The situation with coronavirus should not considerably influence the Ukrainian grain export, as the demand for agricultural products depends on number of the population, which is growing, and it is less elastic than the demand for fuel, consumer goods or tourism services, acting Director General of the Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA) Serhiy Ivaschenko has said.
According to him, since the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic in China, Ukraine has not yet felt on its part the decline in demand for cereals.
“However, it should be remembered that certain logistic restrictions, such as a ban on entering ports for ships that visited regions where coronavirus disease is detected, or credit restrictions due to the collapse of economies, can negatively affect international trade,” he told Interfax-Ukraine.
Ivaschenko said that such physical and financial limits could well have a negative impact on the dynamics of Ukrainian agricultural exports.
“At present, oil and fuel producers are experiencing a drop in demand and prices amid expectations of a decrease in transportation. A slowdown in a large economy such as China will certainly have a negative impact on other economies. If effective methods of combating coronavirus are not found in the near future, then the consequences for all the economies of the world will be very negative – an economic crisis may begin,” he said.
At the same time, the expert added that a drop in international trade will lead to an increase in product stocks and lower prices for it in the domestic market of Ukraine, as well as a drop in export revenue and national budget revenues.
