Vessels carrying iron ore and cast iron left Ukraine’s largest port heading for the Bosphorus strait, the latest to use a new maritime corridor out of the country, even as future grain exports remain uncertain. The ships had been stuck in Pivdennyi since Russia invaded Ukraine 18 months ago. Separately, Kyiv plans to challenge any extension of a grain-import ban by Poland and four other EU member states, which has become a rare point of friction between Ukraine and its Eastern European allies.
(Bloomberg) — Vessels carrying iron ore and cast iron left Ukraine’s largest port heading for the Bosphorus strait, the latest to use a new maritime corridor out of the country, even as future grain exports remain uncertain. The ships had been stuck in Pivdennyi since Russia invaded Ukraine 18 months ago. Separately, Kyiv plans to challenge any extension of a grain-import ban by Poland and four other EU member states, which has become a rare point of friction between Ukraine and its Eastern European allies.
Preparations are underway for Russian-run elections in the four regions of Ukraine illegally annexed by Moscow last year. The ballots are being held as part of municipal elections across Russia that end on Sept. 10. The EU in June condemned Russia’s plan for elections in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, saying the move “seriously violates the UN Charter and Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.” Reuters reported that authorities were setting up polling booths in Mariupol in Donetsk on Thursday, and that a handful of residents cast votes.
Russian-led forces are holding military exercises in Belarus near the border with Poland, weeks after President Vladimir Putin warned Warsaw that he would treat any “aggression” toward Minsk as an attack on his own country. Kremlin troops targeted the Vinnytsia region in central Ukraine with two Kalibr cruise missiles overnight, with one downed and the second damaging private homes. Kyiv’s army continues advancing south of Bakhmut and in the direction of Melitopol, the General Staff said.
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Markets
Wheat traders are watching for potential developments on a revamped Black Sea grain export agreement. Turkey’s foreign minister is doing a round of talks in Moscow, and Putin is set to meet with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan next week. Ukraine, meanwhile, hopes to boost grain exports via the Danube.
Oil is headed for the biggest weekly gain since April after Russia signaled it would extend export curbs and China fired another salvo of state support to bolster the economy in the world’s largest crude importer. Read more: Russia Agrees on Further OPEC+ Oil-Export Cuts, Novak Says
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