By the end of August the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will have decided on whether to launch the fourth tranche of credit to support the Ukrainian economy, which has been badly affected by the crisis. In the first quarter of this year the Ukrainian GDP recorded a 20% drop and foreign trade turnover decreased by 50%.
„The crisis has also taken its toll on Ukrainian exports. Companies have stopped paying taxes and this, in turn, has left an imprint on the budget,” said Vice Minister of the Ukrainian economy, Anatolij Maksiuta, a guest to the panel in Krynica entitled „What is the future of the Ukrainian economy?”. The Ukrainian government hopes for support from the IMF and European banks in its attempts to combat the recession.
„This year we should receive a 1.5 billion-dollar loan from international financial institutions,” Maksiuta said. In his opinion, Ukraine complies with its obligations to the IMF. „The government has started the procedure of increasing banks' capital. We have prepared a strategy for pension and tax reforms. We are working on regulations adjusting gas and energy rates on the internal market,” he emphasised. An IMF representative in Ukraine, Max Alier thinks that Ukraine’s biggest problem is still a lack of public trust in the banking sector. „The situation is getting better, though. We have invested 10 billion dollars in the Ukrainian economy and we will still be supporting it,” he pointed out. The IMF has granted Ukraine 16.4 billion dollars.
