Ukraine's agricultural exports up 32% over 6 months

Ukraine's agricultural exports rose 32 percent over the past six months, Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk said Friday, attributing the increase to the sound development of the agricultural industry.
During the period, Ukraine has considerably boosted its supplies of grain, meat and sunflower oil abroad, especially to the European Union and some Asian countries, Yatsenyuk told reporters during his visit to the central Poltava region.
The agricultural sector has seen a 16-percent increase in the output since the beginning of the year, significantly boosting the exports, according to the prime minister.
Ukraine is the world's largest producer of sunflower oil and a major global producer of grain and sugar.
Yatsenyuk said Kiev expected the agricultural sector to continue its positive performance, making Ukraine a "breadbasket" for the rest of the world. "We are one of the key players in the global agricultural market."
Last year, Ukraine's agricultural exports were down 5.5 percent to 17.3 billion U.S. dollars.