The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) will soon consider some relaxations regarding foreign exchange operations, said the head of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Kyrylo Shevchenko.
“I think that in the near future we will consider some concessions regarding foreign exchange transactions. In principle, we are already doing them,” he said in an interview with Economic Truth.
The head of the NBU added that today the difference between the official rate and the rate on the black market has begun to narrow quite significantly compared to what it was at the beginning of the war.
“If at the beginning of the war we saw in exchangers that the exchange rate fluctuated around UAH 40/$, today the average cash market rate is 31.63-32.05 UAH/$. This is not a very wide spread and this makes us happy”, he pointed out.
As reported, on February 24, the National Bank suspended the work of the foreign exchange market of Ukraine, except for the sale of foreign currency, and fixed the rate at the level of February 24.
The growth of consumer prices in Ukraine in March 2022 accelerated to 4.5% from 1.6% in February, 1.3% in January and 0.6% in December, the State Statistics Service (Gosstat) reported on Friday.
In March last year, inflation was 1.7%, so in annual terms, in March this year, it rose to 13.7% from 10.7% in February and 10% in January, the agency said.
Core inflation also jumped to 3.8% last month from 1% in February and 0.1% in January. Taking into account 1.7% in March 2021 in annual terms, it increased to 10.5% from 8.2% in February and 7.6% in January.
Since the beginning of this year, for its first quarter, inflation was 7.6%, base – 4.9%, said the State Statistics Service.
The National Bank of Ukraine, as its head Kirill Shevchenko said in an interview with Ekonomicheskaya Pravda, estimated inflation in March at 2.1%, in annual terms – 11.1%, and the base – 8.5%, indicating that deviations from the pre-war forecast (respectively 9.2% and 8.2%) – moderate.
According to the State Statistics Service, prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 6.2% in the consumer market in March. Most of all (by 21.3% and 15.5%) rose in price fruits and vegetables. Prices for rice, cereal products, sugar, lard, sunflower oil, fish and fish products, pasta, butter, milk, cheese and eggs, soft drinks, meat and other products increased by 9.8-3.5%.
Clothes and footwear went up by 13%, incl. clothing – by 13.3%, footwear – by 12.5%.
The increase in prices (tariffs) by 0.5% for housing, water, electricity, gas and other types of fuel was mainly due to an increase in prices for rental housing by 4.0%, maintenance and repair of housing – by 2.2%.
Prices in the healthcare sector rose by 5.6%, primarily due to an increase in the cost of pharmaceutical products by 8.1%.
The 4.2% increase in transport prices was mainly due to a 7.7% increase in fuel and oil prices.
As reported, in 2021, inflation in Ukraine rose to 10% from 5% in 2020 and 4.1% in 2019, the core inflation to 7.9% against 4.5% a year earlier.
Since the beginning of Russia’s armed aggression in Ukraine, hryvnia deposits of the population have grown by 19%, while deposits in foreign currency have decreased by 2%, said the head of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), Kyrylo Shevchenko.
“As for the outflow of deposits, on April 1, compared to the first day of the war, hryvnia deposits of the population increased by 19%. Deposits in foreign currency decreased by 2%,” he said in an interview with Economic Truth.
Shevchenko added that since the beginning of the active phase of the war, the funds of legal entities have decreased by 4% – in hryvnias and by 8% – in US dollars.
“We have no critical outflows from the system,” the head of the NBU summed up.
Indian pharmaceutical companies – members of the Indian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (IPMA) donated about UAH 60 million worth of medicines to Ukrainian clinics and public organizations for free, continue their work in Ukraine, IPMA told Interfax-Ukraine. According to a press release, Indian pharmaceutical companies donated mainly antibiotics, analgesics, hemostatic, antiallergic, tonic drugs and vitamins.
In particular, Dia Pharma donated medicines worth UAH 1.818 million (antibiotics and hemostatic drugs – hemostatics) to hospitals, Dr. Reddy’s donated medicines worth UAH 14.7 million UAH to the Ministry of Health. The Euro Lifecare/Konark company (Euro Lifecare) donated medicines worth almost UAH 5.79 million to hospitals, the volunteers of this company daily deliver medicines and food to those in need in Kharkiv and the region.
Pharmaceutical company “Hetero” (Hetero) donated drugs (antibiotics and antiallergic drugs) in the amount of UAH 4.58 million to hospitals in Kyiv through the state institution “Public Health Center”. Macleods Pharmaceuticals donated medicines (antibiotics, analgesics, hemostatic drugs) worth UAH 26.26 million to the Public Health Center in the capital. Mega Lifesciences donated medicines (analgesics) worth UAH 400,000 to hospitals.
Pharmaceutical company “Organosyn” (Organosyn) donated medicines worth more than UAH 2.891 million to hospitals.
Sun Pharma donated medicine (analgesics, antibiotics, gastroenterological drugs) worth UAH 3.3 million. Ukrainian hospitals. In addition, Sun Pharma Romania donated $500,000 to public organizations in Romania to help people coming from Ukraine.
The report also states that the company “Abryl Pharm” (Abryl Pharm), together with volunteers, works in Kyiv and daily delivers food, medicine and medical supplies to soldiers. The M.Biotech company, in cooperation with a public organization (charitable foundation) in Ukraine, plans to supply humanitarian cargo from India with medicines, including anesthesia, tranquilizers and hormonal drugs.
Also, volunteers from IPMA participants (“Abril Pharm”, “San Pharma”, “Konark”) are engaged in the delivery of food, medicines and other necessary materials that the military at checkpoints and people evacuated from the places of hostilities need. For their part, “Euro Lifecare” and “Konark” organized transport to evacuate people to the western regions of Ukraine.
Commenting on the work of Indian pharmaceutical companies in Ukraine since the beginning of the war, IPMA noted that Indian pharmaceutical companies remain on the Ukrainian market. Work continues, in particular, on the provision of humanitarian assistance, the work of managers and warehouses for servicing and shipping orders to distributors. Also, work is underway with clients and doctors in the western and central regions of Ukraine, where there are no hostilities, assistance is provided in hospitals in Kyiv.
“Companies are adjusting to new realities – the military situation in the country. In connection with the movement of employees to other regions of Ukraine, they work online, jobs are saved and companies hope to resume their previous work in peacetime,” the association said.
She also noted that the companies are shipping to distributors from warehouses in Ukraine and are looking for new import routes through western borders.
At the same time, IPMA still finds it difficult to assess the damage caused by the Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“Given that the war is still going on in its “hot phase”, it will be possible to estimate the damage approximately only after the situation stabilizes,” the association stressed.
As a result of the shelling of the railway station in Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, by Russian troops, 39 people were killed and 89 injured – the enemy is purposefully shelling civilians to prevent evacuation, said Pavel Kirilenko, head of the Donetsk Regional Military District.
“It was precisely at the time when the exclusively civilian population was at the railway station of Kramatorsk that the Tochka U cruise missile with cluster munitions arrived … 39 people were killed, 83 people were injured,” Kirilenko said during an online briefing on Friday in Kyiv.
According to him, all the wounded have already been delivered to the medical institutions of the region, medical institutions and doctors from other regions of Ukraine are involved in the provision of medical care, depending on the condition of the victims.
“The enemy immediately got fakes that this shelling was carried out by the Ukrainian armed forces. This is another confirmation of incredible cynicism… All evidence and evidence will be provided. what I said, that they (the Russian Federation) will sow panic and hit only the local population,” the head of the OAVA said.
He noted that the arrival of the missile with cluster munitions was designed for manpower. “This is confirmation that this was directed against the civilian population … this is done solely to ensure that people do not leave the territory of the region,” Kirilenko said.
He also added that all possible measures will be taken to ensure maximum safety of people during the evacuation.
Communications and power supply are still missing in the Ivankivska, Dymerska and Polesie united territorial communities of the Vyshgorodsky district of the Kiev region, previously liberated from occupation, measures are being taken to normalize the situation and restore infrastructure in them, said the head of the Kiev regional military administration Oleksandr Pavlyuk.
“The Vyshgorod, Petrovskaya and Pirnovskaya communities are unchanged, the population is provided with the necessary assistance … Slavutych still needs food and medicine,” Pavlyuk wrote in Telegram on Tuesday.
In the Buchansky and Brovarsky districts, where the fighting took place, demining and clearing work continues. Emergency teams are working to restore water, electricity and gas supply. Law enforcement officers fix the crimes caused by the invaders against the civilian population.
In Obukhovsky, Borispolsky, Belotserkovsky and Fastovsky districts of the Kiev region, according to the head of the regional administration, the situation is calm and controlled. “The sowing campaign continues. Critical infrastructure facilities are operating as usual,” Pavlyuk wrote.
