Ukraine’s economy is demonstrating resilience this year, with GDP growth projected to reach 4.7% after falling by 29.1% last year, Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko said at a meeting with the G7 financial bloc on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank meetings in Marrakech on Thursday in Marrakech.
“Inflation is falling faster than expected: to 7.1% in September 2023 from 26.6% in 2022. Domestic borrowings have exceeded the plan and have already reached more than $11 billion since the beginning of the year. Thanks to our partners, international financial support is rhythmic and predictable, totaling $33.8 billion in 2023,” Marchenko was quoted as saying in a press release from the Ministry of Finance on Thursday evening.
The discussion, which was attended by finance ministers and central bank governors of the G7 member states, the IMF, the World Bank and the European Commission, focused on Ukraine’s financial system, the state of implementation of structural reforms and cooperation with international financial organizations and the EU in the context of meeting budgetary needs in 2024.
The Minister emphasized that the Government of Ukraine is committed to implementing the reforms identified in cooperation with international partners.
In their turn, finance ministers of a number of countries and leaders of the EU, IMF and World Bank assured to maintain their support for Ukraine as long as necessary, the release said.
Although the joint efforts of the Ukrainian government and international partners have ensured the full provision of all public services to the population for nine months in a row, avoiding monetary financing, Marchenko emphasized that the uncertainty provoked by the war remains.
According to him, the 2024 budget envisages the accumulation of maximum resources for the security and defense sector, with expenditures at the level of the current year, as well as the creation of conditions for the development of the domestic defense industry. At the same time, it provides for an increase in spending on social protection and humanitarian aid, as supporting Ukrainians is an important priority of the Ukrainian government, and therefore the state budget deficit is projected at $42.9 billion.
“I am very grateful to our partners for their assurances of continued support for the next year. We already have agreements with such countries as Japan and the UK. Also, Ukraine and the EU are actively working on the creation of the Ukraine Facility for 2024-2027 with a total volume of EUR 50 billion,” the Minister of Finance said.
He added that Ukraine’s fulfillment of the conditions set in cooperation with the IMF will allow it to receive $5.4 billion under the EFF program next year.
“However, even with all these commitments, the deficit remains high,” Marchenko added and expressed hope that donors would help Ukraine cover social and humanitarian spending in full.
Ukraine’s largest mobile operator Kyivstar has invested $3 million in the development of Helsi (Healthy Ukraine LLC) after buying a controlling stake in August 2022, Kyivstar President Oleksandr Komarov said at the Kyiv International Economic Forum.
“Over the year that we have owned (Helsi), we have invested $3 million in the development of this player. The team has grown 2.5 times,” Komarov said.
According to him, the number of telemedicine consultations doubled in 2023.
Helsi is a medical information system and a leading digital healthcare provider in Ukraine with more than 23 million patients and is known as a provider of SaaS medical information system solutions for 1300 public and private clinics. “Kyivstar acquired a 69.99% stake in August last year for UAH 555.74 million.
According to Kyivstar’s report for the second quarter of 2023, Helsi increased the number of registered users to 25.4 million patients, compared to more than 25 million a quarter earlier.
The number of downloads of the Helsi mobile application increased by 0.4 million to 5.4 million in the second quarter, while the number of bookings of doctor’s appointments through the platform remained at approximately 1.8 million for the quarter.
In Brussels, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and Bulgaria’s Defense Minister Todor Tagarev signed a memorandum expanding the scope of bilateral cooperation, including cyber defense, strategic communications, and military and technical support.
“The results of the meeting with my Bulgarian counterpart Todor Tagarev are significant. We have signed a Memorandum expanding the scope of bilateral cooperation, including cyber defense, strategic communications, and military and technical support. The document also lays the foundation for future defense cooperation and military cooperation,” Umerov wrote in X.
In addition, Bulgaria will help with English language courses for future Ukrainian F-16 pilots.
“I am grateful for the important support of Minister Tagarev and the entire Bulgarian people,” the minister added.
Dnipro Metallurgical Plant (DMZ, formerly Dniprokoks), a part of DCH Steel of businessman Aleksandr Yaroslavsky’s DCH group, produced 8.5 thousand tons of rolled steel in September this year, increasing production by 91.6% y-o-y and 97.4% y-o-y in September 2022.
According to information in the corporate newspaper DCH Steel on Thursday, coke production last month decreased by 19% compared to August 2023, but increased by 61.3% compared to September 2022, to 20.9 thousand tons.
It is specified that in September, rolling shop No. 1 produced SVP-33 mine support and R-34 mine rails, and rolling shop No. 2 produced mine support and structural shapes.
The coke and chemicals business increased output of blast furnace coke for steel mills, and produced coal coke and chemical products.
In total, in the first nine months of 2023, DMZ produced 82.6 thousand tons of rolled metal products (+82.4% compared to the same period in 2022) and 219 thousand tons of coke (+36.2%).
As a reminder, DMZ resumed rolled steel production after a three-month shutdown in April 2022. Last year, the plant reduced its rolled steel production by 74.2% to 58.4 thousand tons compared to 2021, and coke production by 56.3% to 211.3 thousand tons.
DMZ specializes in the production of steel, pig iron, rolled products and products made from them. On March 1, 2018, DCH Group signed an agreement to buy Dnipro Metallurgical Plant from Evraz.
The Ministry of Economy invites you to participate in the international forum “Industrial Visa Waiver (ASAA) in the System of Economic Recovery and Development of Ukraine”.
The forum is organized at the initiative of the Department of Technical Regulation within the framework of the international cooperation project ReACT4UA, with funding from the German government and with the support of the German federal company Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the public union “Foundation for Support of Reforms in Ukraine”.
Date of the event: October 13, 2023.
Registration: 9:00 – 10:00 Kyiv time.
Registration is required. Online registration is available here.
Start: 10:00 a.m. Kyiv time.
Format: online/free of charge.
Simultaneous translation (English/Ukrainian) will be provided.
The main objective: to consider the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products (ACAA Agreement, or the so-called “industrial visa-free regime”) as a factor in overcoming technical barriers to trade, increasing the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises and restoring Ukraine’s economy in general during the war and post-war period.
Key objectives: to hear business priorities and outline ways to create a unified European business environment where each participant will be able to establish communications to find partners.
Two sessions:
Session 1: “Ukraine’s quality infrastructure in the European coordinate system: economic recovery and development”;
II session: “Dialogue with Ukrainian and EU businesses on practical aspects of internationalization of enterprises.
Participation in the Forum is a great opportunity for businesses to get guidance on the movement of industrial goods, search for reliable partners in areas where countries have accumulated significant human and production potential.
Representatives of the following are invited to participate in the Forum:
state-owned enterprises, institutions, organizations operating in the field of technical regulation, standardization, metrology and metrological activities
manufacturers and businesses interested in the production and export of industrial products of Ukraine
other interested parties.
The official media partner is Interfax-Ukraine.
Inflation in Ukraine will drop to 9% or lower in 2023 from 26.6% last year, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at the opening of the Kyiv International Economic Forum on Thursday.
“We have inflation of about 8-9% for the year. I am convinced that it will not be higher,” the Prime Minister said.
According to him, after a 29.1% decline, GDP growth this year was “3%+”.
“The (budget) deficit still remains 20% of GDP, but we have found a way to compensate for it: while last year we received $32 billion in grants and soft loans, this year we expect to receive $42 billion without military support and other humanitarian contributions,” Shmyhal said.
As reported with reference to the State Statistics Service, inflation in Ukraine in September fell to 7.1% in annual terms from 8.6% in August and 11.3% in July. Since the beginning of this year, inflation in the country has been 3.0%, with core inflation at 4.1%.
At the end of July, the National Bank of Ukraine again improved its inflation forecast for this year from 14.8% to 10.6%, but last week announced plans to further revise it downward.
In 2022, inflation is expected to rise to 26.6% from 10% in 2021, and core inflation to 22.6% from 7.9%.
