A 66% jump in metal sales in April turned Ukraine’s trade deficit into a surplus.

A 66% jump in metal sales in April turned Ukraine’s trade deficit into a surplus. April sales hit $1 billion, the highest level since August 2014, when Kyiv started to lose economic control over much of the Donbas. During the first four months of the year, ferrous metals exports grew by almost one third, year over year, to $3.5 billion. Ferrous metals accounted for 23% of Ukraine’s overall exports, up from 19% during the same period last year. Writing before the US steel tariff started Friday, Concorde Capital’s Evgeniya Akhtyrko said: “The jump in metal export sales came as a very good surprise.”