The growth of Ukraine’s real GDP in August remained close to 8% compared to August 2022, but the GDP was more than 20% lower than 2021’s level, the Institute of Economic Research (IER) reported.
According to experts, the termination of the grain agreement increased the EU’s share of Ukrainian merchandise exports to 73%, despite the current restrictions. As for the financial markets, the experts pointed out that lower-than-expected inflation and a stronger hryvnia than assumed during the drafting of the 2023 state budget present challenges in implementing the state budget revenue plan.
“In August, there was no usual grant from the US, but the EU provided a regular loan tranche. The NBU’s international reserves decreased somewhat but remained high thanks to the receipt of a soft loan from the EU,” the IER noted.
In August, consumer inflation returned to a single-digit level for the first time in more than two years and amounted to 8.6% thanks to a record drop in vegetable prices.