(Bloomberg) — European Union officials are meeting Monday to try to break an impasse over a proposed embargo on Russian oil imports amid continued resistance from Hungary.
Most Read from Bloomberg
The EU failed to strike a deal Sunday despite a push to get an agreement before a two-day meeting of the bloc’s leaders starting Monday afternoon in Brussels. Hungary is refusing to back a compromise despite proposals aimed at securing its Russian oil supplies, according to people familiar with the talks.
Meanwhile, Russia is planning a bond-payment mechanism to sidestep US sanctions and a potential default as a grace period ticks down on its latest missed coupons. On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited front-line troops in the Kharkiv region in his first trip away from Kyiv since Russia’s invasion.
(See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.)
Key Developments
-
EU Nations Yet to Break Stalemate Over Russian Oil Embargo
-
Russia Comes Up With a New Bond-Payment Plan to Avoid Default
-
Rosneft Plans to Pay Record-High Annual Dividend on Oil’s Rally
-
Ukraine Faces a Dangerous New Adversary — Time: Balance of Power
-
Zelenskiy Visits Troops, Inspects Bombed-Out Housing in Kharkiv
All times CET:
Rosneft Plans Record Dividend (11:45 a.m.)
Russian oil giant Rosneft PJSC promised record dividends on the back of soaring prices, but some foreign investors may struggle to access the payout.
The board recommended 23.63 rubles a share for the second half of 2021, bringing full-year dividends to an all-time high of 41.66 rubles. That follows an announcement last week by Gazprom PJSC, which proposed its highest ever payout after benefiting from a supply crunch in Europe. The decisions of both companies will see the Russian state gaining the most, as it’s the biggest shareholder. Many foreign investors could have difficulties obtaining the payout following restrictions imposed by President Vladimir Putin.
Crypto Exchange Buys Eurovision Mic to Fund Drones (11:15 a.m.)
A crypto-currency exchange bought this year’s Eurovision crystal mic trophy from Kalush Orchestra, the Ukrainian rap-folk band that won the competition, to help it raise funds for their country’s military.
Estonian crypto exchange WhiteBit bought the trophy for $900,000 in an auction held on Instagram over the weekend. Oleh Psiuk, Kalush Orchestra’s lead singer, also sold his signature pink hat for 11 million hryvnia ($374,000). The money will be spent on drone systems, according to the band.
Kherson Farmers ‘Start Grain Sales to Russia’ (11 a.m.)
Part of last year’s grain harvest is being shipped from the southern Kherson region to Russia, Tass reported, citing Kirill Stremousov, a representative of the military-civilian administration there. Ukrainian farmers and officials have accused Russia of confiscating and stealing grain from areas it has seized. Russia almost completely occupies Kherson and Stremousov is deputy head of the administration.
Separately, Taras Kachka, a deputy Ukrainian economy minister, called for warships to patrol the Black Sea to protect vessels carrying food exports from Russian attacks. His comments on Facebook followed reports of multiple Russian air strikes on a bridge in Zatoka between the Black Sea and the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi estuary, which is key for Ukrainian export shipments.
Ukraine’s exports have been limited to rail and road routes via neighboring EU nations since the war started, helping to keep grain prices near a record high.
Russian Advance in Sievierodonetsk Continues (9:30 a.m.)
Russian troops continue to advance toward the city center in Sievierodonetsk in the eastern Luhansk region, according to Serhiy Haiday, the local governor. “Battles are continuing, the situation is very difficult,” he said on his Telegram channel.
The city’s infrastructure has been ravaged, with 60% of residential buildings so severely damaged that they can no longer be repaired, Haiday said, adding that about 1 million of people in the occupied areas of Luhansk remain without a functioning water supply.
New French Foreign Minister Visits Kyiv (7:30 a.m.)
France’s new foreign affairs minister, Catherine Colonna, is visiting Kyiv on Monday, where she will meet Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba and President Zelenskiy.
Colonna will underline France’s determination to reinforce its support for Ukraine, both humanitarian and financial, and in terms of supplying defense equipment, according to a statement from the foreign ministry. She will discuss the blockade of cereal and oil-seed exports from Ukraine in an effort to find concrete solutions as quickly as possible, the ministry said.
South Korea Conservatives Plan Ukraine Visit (5:44 a.m.)
Members of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s conservative People Power Party said they plan to visit Ukraine next month, as the government mulls sending more aid to Kyiv.
Yoon’s government may reach a deal with Canada that could include providing the North American country with as many as 100,000 artillery shells, which would then make their way to Ukraine, South Korean broadcaster SBS reported, citing an unidentified military source. Canada has been providing lethal weapons to Ukraine and recently requested South Korea to provide weapons to Ottawa, it said.
New Russian Bond-Payment Plan (1:12 a.m.)
The proposal would allow foreign investors to open accounts in Russian banks in both rubles and hard currency, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in an interview with the Vedomosti newspaper.
Unlike the previous payment system, investors would be able to access the funds without restriction, he was quoted as saying. The mechanism is still being discussed by the government, after which it will be presented to investors. Russia is back in default countdown as coupon payments in euros and dollars worth about $100 million hadn’t landed in investors accounts as of Friday evening, effectively triggering a 30-day grace period.
Zelenskiy Fires Kharkiv Security Head (9:30 p.m.)
Zelenskiy said he fired the head of Ukraine’s security service in the Kharkiv region, where he handed out medals earlier Sunday to troops fighting Russian forces.
“I dismissed the head of the Security Service of the Kharkiv region because, since the beginning of the war, he has not been trying to protect the city and was thinking only of himself,” Zelenskiy said on Telegram. He didn’t elaborate or provide the official’s name.
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
Add Comment