До кінця поточного року українські експортери не відчують жодних змін у торгівлі із Великою Британією через процес виходу цієї країни зі складу ЄС, повідомили у пресслужбі Міністерства розвитку економіки, торгівлі та сільського господарства України.

«Що потрібно запам’ятати нашим експортерам: зараз не змінюється нічого, далі з 1 січня наступного року у нас буде Угода про вільну торгівлю з Великою Британією. З огляду на те, що ми готувались до різних сценаріїв «брекзиту», минулого року ми майже повністю підготували угоду. Вона буде дуже подібна до Угоди про вільну торгівлю з Європейським союзом. Зараз в нас ще є достатньо часу, аби доопрацювати проєкт угоди», – заявив торговий представник України, заступник міністра економрозвитку Тарас Качка.

У відомстві додали, що до кінця 2020 року, поки триватиме перехідний період, українські експортери не відчують жодних змін у торгівлі із Британією «як напряму, так і при ввозі товарів на митну територію ЄС через інші держави-члени ЄС з метою транзиту у Велику Британію».

31 січня 2020 року Велика Британія почала процес виходу із Європейського союзу. До 31 грудня діятиме перехідний період, на час якого Британія залишатиметься учасником Митного союзу ЄС. У цей час країна продовжить дотримуватися правил Європейського союзу, але вже не матиме своїх представників у європейських інституціях. Паралельно сторони продовжать домовлятися про подальшу економічну й безпекову співпрацю.
…

Долар за день подорожчав на 11 копійок, свідчать дані на сайті Національного банку України.

На 3 лютого офіційна вартість долара встановлена на рівні 25 гривень 3 копійок.

Востаннє курс перевищував позначку у 25 гривень за долар 31 жовтня 2019 року.

У січні долар зміцнився приблизно на 5%. На початку року його вартість становила 23 гривні 69 копійок.

 
…

Вартість готівки, яка є в обігу в Україні, сягає 425 мільярдів гривень, повідомив Національний банк України дані на 1 січня. У тому числі в обігу є 13,4 мільярда монет на 2,6 мільярда гривень та 2,9 мільярда банкнот на 422,4 мільярда гривень.

«На початок 2020 року середня кількість банкнот на одного українця становила 70 штук, а монет (розмінних та обігових монет 1, 2 та 5 грн, які є засобом платежу) – 182 штуки. Середня кількість монет, що припадають на одного українця, знизилася за рік на 41% (внаслідок вилучення з обігу розмінних монет номіналами 1, 2 та 5 копійок та припинення видач монет номіналом 25 копійок з 01 жовтня 2019 року)», – розповіли в регуляторі.

У Нацбанку повідомили, що банкнот номіналом 200 гривень та розмінних монет по 10 копійок – найбільше (23,4% та 28,9% відповідно). Крім того, у готівковому обігу є майже 4 мільйони штук банкнот номіналом 1 000 гривень, які були введені в обіг з 25 жовтня 2019 року.

За даними НБУ, 1 січня 2019 року сума готівки становила 400,1 мільярда гривень.
…

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday praised Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for his handling of a National Public Radio reporter who Pompeo shouted at, cursed, and called a liar after a contentious interview.”That reporter couldn’t have done too good a job on you yesterday,” Trump said to Pompeo, the chief U.S. diplomat, during a presentation of his Middle East peace plan, prompting laughter from the crowd of officials and dignitaries gathered at the White House.”I think you did a good job on her actually,” he added.Pompeo was interviewed on Friday by NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly, and was asked repeatedly about Ukraine and how he had supported ousted U.S. Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch to Kyiv during a testy nine-minute exchange.US State Department Bars NPR Reporter from Pompeo Trip After Testy InterviewMike Pompeo was interviewed on Friday by NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly, and was asked repeatedly about Ukraine and ousted US Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch during a testy nine-minute
exchangeFollowing the interview, Kelly said that Pompeo cursed at her and repeatedly “used the F-word” and asked her: “Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?”In a statement on Saturday, Pompeo said the reporter had lied in setting up the interview and in agreeing to conduct the post-interview conversation off the record. His statement did not dispute what she said about the content of the post-interview encounter. Kelly said Pompeo’s staff did not stipulate that the post-interview meeting was to be off the record.The U.S. State Department on Monday removed another NPR reporter from the press pool for Pompeo’s upcoming foreign trip, a move the State Department Correspondents’ Association (SDCA) said could only be seen as retaliation for the colleague’s interview.
 
…

In a groundbreaking case in France, energy giant Total is being sued for allegedly failing to adequately fight climate change.The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday by environmental groups and local authorities who feel it has potential global implications.The legal action against Total will be the first use of a 2017 French law to sue for climate inaction. The legislation requires major French companies to draft so-called “vigilance plans” to prevent environmental damage, among other areas. The plaintiffs said Total has not done so when it comes to climate change.  “We’re filing a lawsuit against them because they’re still not making the energy transition necessary to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees,” said Paul Mougeolle, who represents Notre Affaire a Tous, an environmental NGO that has filed a separate climate action case against the French government.  “Total has 1% of greenhouse gases worldwide — more than the carbon footprint of France,” Mougeolle said. “So, we think Total has a special responsibility towards this energy transition.”Fourteen local authorities and five civil society groups have joined the Total lawsuit, which reflects a broader grass-roots uprising on climate in Europe and elsewhere.  This alliance said companies that contribute to climate change should help pay the price for mitigating it and dealing with the consequences.France’s central Val de Loire region is part of the lawsuit.Regional councilor Benoit Faucheaux describes last summer’s devastating drought, which dried up rivers in his region of central France. Experts said climate change will make such droughts longer, more frequent and more devastating.  “We hope Total will change its business model, that it will shift from that situation where it produces energy and fossil energies (to) another model where they are involved in energy transition,” Faucheaux said.Sebastien Mabile of Seattle Advocates law group, which has taken on the case, is uncertain about its chances — because it’s a legal first. But if it succeeds, he said, its impact could be big.  “Because Total … operates in 130 countries,” Mabile said. “So, this case can have implications all over the world, such as the U.S., Africa, in all of the oil and gas basins.”Total faces a separate but somewhat similar lawsuit for allegedly failing to plan for potential human and environmental impacts of an Ugandan oil project. The company did not respond VOA’s requests for comment.
…

Середня номінальна заробітна плата в грудні становила 12 264 гривні, повідомила Державна служба статистики України.

Порівняно з листопадом рівень середньої зарплати зріс на 14,8%, а порівняно з груднем 2018-го – на 16%.

Водночас станом на 1 січня загальна сума заборгованості по зарплатах в Україні становила 3,034 мільярда гривень. Це приблизно на 200 мільйонів менше порівняно з попереднім місяцем.
…

The pressure on Britain’s disgraced Prince Andrew increased Tuesday after the revelation by U.S. authorities that he has failed to cooperate with the FBI’s investigation into his ties with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Lawyer Lisa Bloom, who represents five of Epstein’s alleged sexual trafficking victims, said Tuesday that it’s time for Andrew “to stop playing games and to come forward to do the right thing and answer questions.”
Bloom said her clients were “outraged and disappointed at Prince Andrew’s behavior.”
Andrew remained out of the public eye Tuesday. Buckingham Palace and his legal team maintained a “no comment” policy one day after U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said Andrew has provided “zero cooperation” to the FBI and the U.S. prosecutors seeking to speak with him about Epstein.
The statement Monday by Berman, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, was the first official confirmation that the leading U.S. law enforcement agency had sought — and failed — to obtain evidence from Andrew, third child of Queen Elizabeth II, despite his pledge in November that he would cooperate with legitimate law enforcement agencies.
The U.S. decision to make the 59-year-old prince’s silence public may be part of a strategy to increase public calls for him to cooperate.FILE – Financier Jeffrey Epstein looks on during a bail hearing in his sex trafficking case, in this court sketch in New York, July 15, 2019.Andrew is being sought for questioning as a witness who may be able to shed light on the illegal activities of Epstein, who died in a New York prison in August while awaiting trial on sexually abusing teenage girls. There’s no indication that U.S. officials are pursuing criminal charges against the prince.
The FBI only has limited ways to try to convince Andrew to give evidence.
U.S. officials have not provided details, so it’s not clear if the FBI made an informal request through Andrew’s lawyers or went through formal police channels, which if successful would have led to an interview conducted by U.K. police, possibly with an FBI agent present.
“They can’t compel him to do any of those things,” said British lawyer Ben Keith, a specialist in extradition and law enforcement. “The next stage after that is to issue a formal Mutual Legal Assistance Request, which would go through the Foreign Office and be dealt with in the court system.”
That could lead, Keith said, to the prince giving evidence via video link to U.S. investigators.
Andrew has been accused by a woman who says that she had several sexual encounters with the prince at Epstein’s behest, starting when she was 17.
Virginia Roberts Giuffre says after meeting Epstein as a teenager in Florida in 2000, he flew her around the world and pressured her into having sex with numerous older men, including Andrew, two senior U.S. politicians, a noted academic, and the attorney Alan Dershowitz, who is now part of President Donald Trump’s impeachment defense team.
Giuffre has said she had sex with Andrew three times, including once in London in 2001 at the home of Epstein’s girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell. Giuffre claims that she was paid by Epstein for her sexual encounters.
Andrew and Dershowitz have denied any wrongdoing. But the royal family forced Andrew to step down from his royal duties and charity patronages in November after giving a disastrous television interview in which he defended his friendship with Epstein and failed to express sympathy for the girls and women who Epstein abused.
Andrew is also being pursued by several lawyers representing Epstein victims who are pushing civil suits against Epstein’s estate.
Those lawyers could choose to bring their request to a British high court, seeking to have an examiner take a statement from Andrew or pursue other ways to obtain his evidence. So far they are only making public calls for him to make himself available and threatening to subpoena Andrew if he travels to the U.S.
The complex legal situation may make Andrew reluctant to visit the U.S., where his evidence is sought on both criminal and civil cases, but lawyers say it’s unlikely to restrict his travel to other countries.
New York criminal defense lawyer Ron Kuby says it’s unlikely the prince will ever voluntarily agree to an interview and said the FBI doesn’t have the means to force him to.
“The likelihood of him participating is very, very small,” Kuby said. “Why would he? The last time Prince Andrew spoke on the relevant topic he was yanked from public life and universally ridiculed.”
Andrew, eighth in line to the throne, has been seen at occasional royal family events since November but has not commented on Epstein since his TV interview backfired.  
…

An artist known for work depicting his native Bolivia has died after being struck by a car in northern Virginia.
Alfredo Da Silva died Sunday. He was 84. Alexandria Police say he died at the scene after he was struck by a car Sunday morning. Police said Tuesday that the crash remains under investigation. The car’s driver remained at the scene and was interviewed by police.
Da Silva lived in Alexandria but was born in Potosi, Bolivia, and studied art in Buenos Aires.
Pablo Zuniga, director of the Art Museum of the Americas in Washington, said Da Silva was in the vanguard of a generation of modern artists from Latin America who rose to prominence in the `50s and ’60s.
“He was a major player at a time Latin American art was being developed,” he said.  
…

Європейський союз виділить Україні 500 мільйонів євро другого траншу макрофінансової допомоги після сигналу з боку МВФ про виконання плану дій для нової програми співпраці, заявив у Брюсселі віцепрезидент Єврокомісії Валдіс Домбровскіс.

«Ми очікуємо виконання Україною ключових попередніх дій, узгоджених з МВФ. Зі свого боку, ми вже запустили відповідні процедури, щоб виплата відбулася, щойно Україна виконає умови програми МВФ», – сказав Домбровскіс.

Журналіст Радіо Свобода у Брюсселі повідомляє, що другий транш від ЄС буде наданий після надання МВФ Україні «остаточного зеленого світла» і це має статися «протягом найближчих тижнів».

Водночас прем’єр-міністр України Олексій Гончарук заявив у Брюсселі, що Україна очікує отримати 500 мільйонів євро другого траншу макрофінансової допомоги від ЄС у першому кварталі поточного року.

Раніше повідомлялося, що погодити другий і фінальний транш макрофінансової допомоги для України Європейська комісія може вже в лютому.

11 грудня 2018 року ЄС направив Україні перший транш четвертої програми макрофінансової допомоги обсягом 500 мільйонів євро.

7 грудня 2019 року президент України Володимир Зеленський та директор-розпорядник МВФ Крісталіна Георгієва провели телефонну розмову. Вони попередньо домовилися про нову трирічну програму співпраці на майже 5,5 мільярда гривень. Документ має бути затверджений керівництвом МВФ.

12 грудня голова НБУ Яків Смолій заявив, що Київ може підписати нову програму з Міжнародним валютним фондом в першому кварталі 2020 року.
…

Національний банк України встановив опівдні довідкове значення 24 гривні 71 копійка за долар, це на 11 копійок більше за офіційний курс на 28 січня.

Регулятор відбиває перебіг торгів на українському міжбанківському валютному ринку, де, за даними Finance.ua, станом на 12:00 котирування сягнули 24 гривень 69–72 копійок за долар.

«НБУ не дає долару просісти навіть у моменти ситуативного перевищення пропозиції над попитом, викуповуючи валюту в резерви. Кліенти і банки сприймають це тільки як сигнал про те, що в даний момент регулятор не готовий до подальшого зміцнення нацвалюти», – вказував сайт «Мінфін» перед початком торгів 28 січня.

Національний банк України з 13 грудня 2019 року встановив облікову ставку на рівні 13,5%, знизивши її одразу на 2%. Також регулятор збільшив обсяг щоденного викупу валюти на міжбанку до 50 мільйонів доларів з попереднього рівня 30 мільйонів доларів.
…

Apple Inc’s plan to ramp up iPhone production by 10% in the first half of this year may hit a roadblock as the coronavirus outbreak spreads across China, the Nikkei Asian Review reported on Tuesday.The company has asked its suppliers, many of whom have manufacturing centers in China, to produce up to 80 million iPhones in the first half of 2020, the Nikkei reported, citing people familiar with the company’s plans. Apple has booked orders for up to 65 million of its older iPhones and up to 15 million units of a new cut-price model that it plans to unveil in March, according to the report.However, the mass production which is due to start in the third week of February might be delayed due to the virus outbreak, the Nikkei reported.The coronavirus outbreak has so far killed more than 100 people and infected over 4,500 in China, stranded tens of millions during the Lunar New Year holiday and rattled global markets.Apple’s shares rose about 86% in 2019, outperforming a 29% rise in the S&P 500 index. The stock closed down nearly 3% at $308.95 on Monday as coronavirus fears dragged down high-flying U.S. chip and technology stocks.Cupertino, California-based Apple, which raked in more than $142 billion in iPhone sales in fiscal 2019, has introduced lower priced smartphone variants to woo budget conscious shoppers and check declining sales of its biggest product category.Last October, Nikkei reported that Apple asked its suppliers to increase production of iPhone 11 models by up to 8 million units, or about 10%, hinting that demand for the recently launched versions of its flagship phone was picking up.The iPhone maker is set to report its first-quarter earnings after markets close on Tuesday.Apple did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. 
…

Vice President Mike Pence’s planned visit on Tuesday to Wisconsin’s liberal stronghold of Madison may signal the opening of a new front in the hotly contested campaign to win the battleground state.
Pence was coming for an event celebrating the private school voucher program, which began in Milwaukee 30 years ago and has grown in popularity in the state and country since then. It’s an issue championed by conservatives, and one that Pence supported as governor of Indiana, giving him the chance to appeal to Republican voters in a swing state.
“The Trump campaign is going to do everything they can to find every last voters they can, everywhere they can,” said Wisconsin Democratic strategist Scott Spector.
Democratic strategist Joe Zepecki said Pence’s visit is more about the event itself than where it’s located. But he and Republicans agreed that President Donald Trump is looking for every vote they can in Wisconsin, even in areas like Madison where there are few to be had.
Madison, home to the University of Wisconsin, has so long been the epicenter of liberals in Wisconsin that a former Republican governor in 1978 dubbed it “30 square miles surrounded by reality.” Democrats know they will win in Madison and usually don’t bother to campaign there, if at all, until the waning days of the race when the goal is to fire up the base.
Pence is coming for the first time as vice president, 10 months before the election and just two weeks after Trump held a rally in Milwaukee.
Trump narrowly won Wisconsin by fewer than 23,000 votes in 2016. He was crushed in Madison and Milwaukee, the epicenters of Democratic support in Wisconsin. Trump got just 15% of the vote in Madison and 18% in Milwaukee.
Even so, coming to Madison now in an election year makes sense because of the media attention the stops generate that will reach voters in more conservative areas far beyond the city’s border, said Republican strategist Brandon Scholz. It also shows that the Trump campaign knows in a tight race it will need to maximize its votes everywhere, not just in rural counties it easily won four years ago, Scholz said.
“They can’t rely on the rest of the state to put them over the top given the intensity the other side will have getting out their base,” he said.
Pence’s stop in Madison is more about securing Republican votes than it is about trying to make inroads with Democrats, he said. In Dane County, where Madison is located, more than 71,000 people voted for Trump in 2016. While it was just 23% of the county total, it was more votes than Trump got in all but two of the state’s 71 other counties.
Still, it is unusual for top-of-the-ticket Republicans to spend time in Madison. Former President George W. Bush, the last incumbent Republican president to run for reelection in 2004, did not campaign in Madison during the entire campaign that year when Wisconsin was also a priority for both sides.
In contrast, his Democratic challenger, John Kerry, held a massive rally with Bruce Springsteen just down the street from the state Capitol that attracted an estimated 80,000 people. Bush lost Wisconsin by just over 11,000 votes on his way to winning reelection.
In 2012, then-President Barack Obama held a rally in the shadow of Wisconsin’s Capitol, again with Springsteen, the day before the election and attracted 20,000 people. Just a month earlier in the campaign he attracted 30,000 people to a rally on the UW campus.
Pence was looking for an event during national school choice week to attend and picked the one in Madison, said Wisconsin School Choice President Jim Bender.
Pence may have been motivated to come by the topic of the event, but with it being in Madison he gets the added bonus of coming to a liberal city in a swing state that he otherwise may have never campaigned in, said the Democratic Spector.
“It’s a smart tactic,” Spector said. “They are taking nothing for granted.”  
…