KIEV, July 23 – Ukraine’s grain exports over the next 12 months may drop to 16-18 million metric tons, down from 21 million metric tons exported over the past 12 months, Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA) reported.

KIEV, July 23 – Ukraine’s consumer confidence fell in June for the first time in 10 months, reflecting people’s growing concerns with the government’s economic policy, GfK Ukraine Co. and the International Center of Policy Studies (ICPS) reported.

KIEV, July 22 – Standard & Poor's Ratings Services may increase Ukraine’s credit rating by one notch if the International Monetary Fund approves $14.9 billion 30-month Standby loan at an expected meeting on Wednesday.

KIEV, July 23 - Ukraine’s No. 2 oil refinery, Linos, owned by Russian oil major TNK-BP, on Friday resumed full operation after an emergency shutdown last week due to a power outage, the company reported.

KIEV, July 23 - Ferrexpo plc, the London-listed resources group, on July 23 announced that the European steel-processing group Voestalpine AG has extended its contract for the supply of iron ore pellets to 2015.

KIEV, July 24 – Ukraine's international reserves in July through December could grow by 4-6%, to $27-27.5 billion, according to the head of the Council of the National Bank of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko.

KIEV, July 24 – Ukraine’s steel consumption will double within the next six years to about 15 million metric tons annually, Andriy Parkhomchuk, sales director at Metinvest, the country’s largest mining and steel conglomerate, said.

KIEV, July 25 - Ukraine’s biggest petrochemical company, KarpatNaftoKhim, received a green light from Kalush city council to start construction of a new polyvinyl-chloride (PVC) production facility, the company’s press service said.

KIEV, July 25 – EnergoAtom, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear power generation company, completed construction and launched in a test-run operation the second hydropower unit at Tashlykska Hydroelectric Pumped Storage Plant, EnergoAtom said in a statement Wednesday.

KIEV, July 25 - Ukraine??™s largest oil refinery UkrTatNafta plans to increase crude oil refining 8.4% year-on-year to 6.5 million metric tons in 2006, compared with 6 million tons refined in 2005, the company said Tuesday.