KIEV, Dec. 23 – The shadow vodka market in 2017 could expand to 65% compared to 50% this year, the Ukrvodka association said.

"The market is sliding to the shadows, and the number of fake vodka poison victims is growing. After increasing the excise duties by 20%, the share of the illegal market would grow from 50% to 65%," Ukrvodka head Volodymyr Ostapiuk told Interfax-Ukraine.

KIEV, Dec. 22 – Ukrzaliznytsia has received confirmation from Polish Railways that new high-speed Intercity+ Kiev-Przemysl-Kiev train pair No. 705/706 is assigned. The train on December 23 will make its first trip from Kiev to Przemysl, Poland.

KIEV, Dec. 23 – One of the biggest ex-shareholders of PrivatBank (Dnipro), Ihor Kolomoisky, has commented on the nationalization of the bank, heaping praise on the government and blame on the National Bank of Ukraine, the website of TSN.ua has said.

KIEV, Dec. 24 – Italy's Eni has confirmed its plans to develop shale gas fields in Ivano-Frankivsk region, the Environment and Natural Resources Ministry stated on Tuesday.

KIEV, Dec. 24 – Public sector employees in Kiev and those of the Kyivpastrans enterprise will not receive salaries for the past two months, as the work of Kiev City Council is blocked, the council's secretary, Halyna Hereha, has said.

KIEV, Dec. 25 – The Clean City National Project as a part of the realization of a project on the construction of first ecological complexes to recycle solid household waste in Ukraine has selected investors into the construction of waste recycling complexes in Kiev, Ternopil, Khmelnytsky, Chernivtsi and Kirovohrad.

KIEV, Dec. 25 - Prime Minister Mykola Azarov expects to receive $12 billion more as a loan from Russia at the beginning of 2014.

"We expect the next $12 billion at the beginning of next year," he said, while opening a session of the Cabinet of Ministers on Wednesday.

KIEV, Dec. 25 – The State Railway Administration (Ukrzaliznytsia) plans to spend UAH 180 million to modernize its energy facilities in 2014 and UAH 114 million for their repair, Vitaliy Maksymchuk, the head of the chief department for electrification and power supply at Ukrzaliznytsia, told reporters.

KIEV, Dec. 24 – The government has decided to increase the debt financing of the deficit of the national budget by UAH 3 billion due to the underperformance of the privatization target.

KIEV, Dec. 25 – The new law on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), which takes effect from January 1, 2013, introduces a tax on profit received from membership fees, President of All-Ukrainian medical union Oleh Musiy said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Monday.