From 09:00 on July 21, 2022, the National Bank of Ukraine adjusted the official exchange rate of the hryvnia against the US dollar by 25% – from UAH 29.2549/$1 to UAH 36.5686/$1, taking into account changes in the fundamental characteristics of the Ukrainian economy during the war and strengthening of the US dollar against other currencies, according to a message on the NBU website.
“Such a step will increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian producers, bring together the exchange rate conditions for different business groups and the population and maintain the stability of the economy in a war,” the National Bank said.
He stressed that the official exchange rate of the hryvnia against the US dollar continues to be fixed.
“With the high uncertainty caused by the war, a fixed official exchange rate against the US dollar is the main anchor for stabilizing expectations and a key means of achieving the NBU’s priority goals. They are to ensure price and financial stability, which is an important condition for economic recovery,” the regulator explains its position.
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) lifted a restriction on May 21 that allowed authorized institutions to sell cash foreign currency to customers with a deviation from the official no more than 10%, the press service of the regulator said on Friday.
Relevant changes were adopted by the NBU Board Resolution №102 of May 20, which was published on the Central Bank’s website and comes into force on May 21.
The document also removes similar restrictions on setting the exchange rate at which banks write off hryvnia funds from customers’ accounts if customers pay with hryvnia cards abroad.
“Removing restrictions on the exchange rates at which banks sell currency to the public will improve the working conditions of legal market participants. This will increase competition, increase liquidity in the legal segment and reduce illegal transactions. All this will make the foreign exchange market more stable and reduce exchange rate amplitude. fluctuations in its cash segment, “the press service of the Deputy Head of the NBU Yuri Geletiy was quoted as saying.
The hryvnia exchange rate on the interbank FX currency market weakened to UAH 28.005/$1 on Friday from UAH 27.860/$1 on the previous business day, dealers of commercial banks has told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to them, the quotes of the national currency at the close of trading amounted to UAH 27.995-UAH 28.015/$1.
According to the data of the National Bank of Ukraine, the hryvnia reference rate on the interbank FX market weakened to UAH 27.94/$1 on Friday from UAH 27.70/$1 on Thursday.
At the same time, the regulator weakened the exchange rate of the national currency for January 17 to UAH 27.9514/$1 from UAH 27.7372/$1 the day before.
Ukrainian exporters of Ukrainian exchange-traded commodities in 2021 have no reason to complain about the external conditions of business due to favorable prices for these commodities and partly excellent harvest, so they should focus on adapting their business to possible future problems, a member of the board of bank Pivdenny (Odesa) Oleksandr Matiushenko has said.
“If we are talking about 2021 and a good harvest on the one hand, and on the other hand, a gorgeous price for us in the foreign market, then I think that this year absolutely all exporters associated with export commodities will not complain that they are not satisfied with something, because today we are witnessing a fairly stable hryvnia exchange rate, the consequences of which are good positions of our export and raw material base,” he said at the CFO Forum in Kyiv on Wednesday.
Matiushenko said that Ukrainian business is successfully coping with the situation that has developed in connection with a sharp rise in prices in the gas or coal market, and its representatives should adapt to possible difficulties in the future, such as problems arising under the terms of concluded contracts or reducing their internal costs.
The banker also said that he considers the hryvnia exchange rate this year adequate with the expected policy of the National Bank of Ukraine.
Parliamentary elections in Ukraine will not affect the hryvnia exchange rate, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine Yakiv Smolii has said. “Double elections did indeed carry some risk expectations in the financial markets, but this absolutely did not affect the exchange rate in any way. It was formed by demand and supply and continues to do so now. The strengthening of the hryvnia was caused primarily by the factors of favorable conditions for our exports, as well as the inflow [of funds] of foreign investors in domestic government securities, which led to an increase in currency supply in the market and, consequently, to the strengthening of the hryvnia,” Smolii said at a press briefing.
