• ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih will invest up to $400 million to expand its operations in Ukraine, leading to the creation of more than 30,000 new jobs for Ukrainians, Ukrinform reported, citing a post on the Facebook page of Prime Minister Volodomyr Groysman.

• Ukrainian investment company Vol West Group will roll out the Netherlands-based international supermarket chain Spar in Ukraine, Novoe Vremya reported. The plans call for stores in four different formats. Vol West Group intends to open 15 Spar stores in Ukraine this year and expand to 50 within three years.

• The price industrial consumers pay for natural gas is predicted to go up 15 to 20 percent and could reach a record high in February, Unian reported. High prices at European gas hubs are combining with the weak hryvnia to produce the situation.

• Mriya's ownership of 10 legal entities and 5,000 hectares of land that go with them was restored in accordance with a government directive, multiple sources reported. The Justice Ministry canceled the previous registration of the 10 firms, whose ownership and management had been changed after the Guta family unlawfully seized control.

• The arrival of Hutchinson Ports and DP World, two of the planet's largest port operators, at Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea will happen this year, Infrastructure Minister Vladimir Omelian said, according to Ekonomicheskaya Pravda.

• Ukraine's revenue from exports of sunflower oil in 2016 jumped more than 20 percent from the previous year, thanks in large part to the world's two most populous countries, according to Ukrinform. India and China combined to receive 43 percent of Ukrainian vegetable oil export stock in 2016. Also, Egypt overtook Turkey as the leading importer of oilseeds from Ukraine.

• Ukrainian International Airlines, the country's largest air carrier, is looking to increase passenger volume 20 to 25 percent this year, according to Interfax Ukraine. Company president Yuri Miroshnikov said that should be easily doable. Based on those percentages, UIA is setting the target at between 7.2 million and 7.5 million passengers.<font size=6 color=e52118>•</font>

• An unspecified Turkish airline wants to launch an affiliate in Ukraine to offer domestic flights, Infrastructure Minister Vladimir Omelian said, as reported by Ekonomicheskaya Pravda. He said the airline would bring in five to seven planes for its operations.

• Two potential investors have filed inquiries indicating their interest in acquiring the insolvent Platinum Bank, Ekonomicheskaya Pravda reported. The filing period extends through Feb. 9.

• The total cost of agricultural crop production went up more than 10 percent in 2016, and the cost of livestock production rose nearly 21 percent, the State Statistics Service reported.

• Kyiv International Airport explained the decision to close the Pavo Group duty-free shop by saying that the owners were suspected of selling contraband and using the store as a cover for their illegal activities.

For comments and news tips, please email UBJ AM editor David Edwards at david.edwards@theubj.com.