News about International trade

The European Beekeepers’ Association (EBA) urges the European Commission to take emergency action by temporarily excluding Turkey, Ukraine and Russia from the list of third countries allowed to import bees. The reason is the detection of a dangerous pest – the mite Tropilaelaps spp. in these countries (as well as in Georgia and Belarus, with the prospect of rapid westward migration).

Kazakhstan is able to occupy a strategically important place in the global competition for mineral resources against the backdrop of the US-China standoff.

Iran’s Central Bank and the IRGC are using the country’s largest crypto exchange to convert dollars. A Reuters investigation found that it processed transactions worth tens and hundreds of millions of dollars related to sanctioned groups, including the Central Bank of Iran and the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The Maritime Agency of the Republic of Moldova will get new powers to assess and manage risks of foreign vessels. This is provided for by a package of changes aimed at harmonizing national regulations with EU standards.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after a telephone conversation with Robert Fitzo that the Slovak prime minister would support Ukraine in the EU membership issue. He also said that he had invited Fitzo to Kiev, and the latter, in turn, invited him to Bratislava. Both leaders accepted the invitations.

US President Donald Trump has announced plans to significantly reduce the number of US troops stationed in Germany.

Japanese Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Yoshimasa Hayashi is visiting Moldova during May 2-3, 2026, in order to strengthen bilateral relations and cooperation in strategic fields.

Romanian President Nicusor Dan said he doubts that the project of complete substitution of Russian gas with American LNG is economically sound because it requires serious infrastructure costs.

In April, the volume of Ukrainian grain shipments by rail to Poland and Romania almost halved. Whereas railroad deliveries of grain from Ukraine to Hungary remained at a stable high level. This was discussed during an online meeting between representatives of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC and participants of the agricultural market.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu will participate in the 8th summit of the European Political Community (EPC), which will take place in Yerevan on May 4. Within the framework of the event, the head of state will particularly touch upon the issues of countering hybrid threats.

The withdrawal of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from OPEC signals a strategic reversal and calls into question Gulf coordination and the future of the cartel.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on May 1 that next week he would raise duties on cars and trucks from the European Union to 25%. The reason for the increase in tariffs he called the EU’s non-compliance with the terms of the trade agreement. The US President did not specify what conditions we are talking about.

After more than 25 years of negotiations, a trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay began to be temporarily applied on Friday.

In less than two weeks, from last Friday to this moment, onions on the Ukrainian market rose in price by an average of 40-45%. Ukrainian farmers were able to increase selling prices for onions for the first time since the beginning of February this year. On the whole, a cardinal increase in prices for this vegetable in Ukraine has not been recorded since mid-May 2025.

Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump will become co-owners of a Kazakh mining company that received $1.6 billion in U.S. government support. A shell company backed by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump has agreed to merge with a critical minerals group that last year secured up to $1.6 billion in U.S. government support for tungsten mining in Kazakhstan.

“Moldova does not rely on one source or one route. We are building step by step a balanced and reliable energy supply portfolio that will ensure stability and predictability. It is crucial for us that this diversification is done at a sustainable price and that the security of supply for citizens remains an absolute priority,” Energy Minister Dorin Junghietu said.

For almost 20 years, a group of companies related to the owners of the Transnistrian holding Sheriff has been operating in Germany. Some of them are even directly controlled by businessmen Victor Gusan and Ilya Kazmala or members of their families.

The 12th Parliament has established two new friendship groups – with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. The MPs made the corresponding decision at the plenary session on Thursday, April 30.

The National Energy Regulatory Agency (NERA) has set new maximum fuel prices that will be in effect from May 1-4.

On July 1, 2026, changes will go into effect to eliminate customs duties on most goods imported from the United States.