Ukraine has issued 1 billion euros worth of Eurobonds to foreign markets, an accomplishment officials view as a positive development for the Ukrainian government and economy.
The Ukrainian Finance Ministry issued the Eurobonds on June 13 at an annual 6.75-percent rate with a seven-year maturity period. The final settlement of the new deal will take place on June 20.
The order book — which indicates the interest of buyers and sellers — for the issue peaked at over 6 billion euros, according the ministry.
Finance Minister Oksana Markarova said that she sees the “transaction to be a sign of (the) continued support of investors in Ukraine’s development and integration into the European market.”
The ministry says that the proceeds of the issue will be used for “general budgetary purposes” and that this issue of Eurobonds is the first euro-denominated one during the past fifteen years.
Alexander Paraschiy, an analyst with Concorde Capital investment bank, described the transaction as “successful for the government” and added that “the deal is positive for the budget’s and state debt’s short-term sustainability, but it does not cancel Ukraine’s urgent need for continue cooperation with the (International Monetary Fund) in the mid-term.”
In March 2019, Ukraine issued $350 million worth of Eurobonds at a 9.75 interest rate, which are due in 2028.
As of June 1, Ukraine’s public debt amounted to $79.82 billion, of which $50.24 billion (63 percent) was foreign debt. In 2018, Ukraine’s ratio of public debt to gross domestic product was 63.9 percent as compared to the peak year of 2016, when it reached 81.2 percent, according to the IMF.
