The Ukrainian parliament has appointed Ihor Petrashko as Ukraine’s economy minister. According to Interfax-Ukraine, 243 members of parliament voted for the appointment decision, introduced by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
The Ukrainian parliament lifted some tax burden from the country’s businesses on March 17, but appeared to fall short on some of the emergency measures that President Zelensky and experts had said they wanted in order to protect the economy and workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, namely increased pensions and a tax-free allowance for low-paid workers.
The legislation temporarily removes value-added tax (VAT) and duty for imported medical goods. Parliament has lifted most penalties for tax law violations during the period from March 1 to May 31. It has also banned tax audits for people and businesses over the same period, while tax exemptions, reductions or compensation for businesses suffering losses weren’t mentioned.
Zelensky and some lawmakers had called for pensioners to get extra payments, and for a tax-free threshold for some low-paid workers, including the self-employed. But at the time of writing, whether those measures are being implemented by the government remains unclear.
To boost the preparedness of the country, Zelensky also met with some of its richest and most powerful people. Oligarchs should take the opportunity to pay the country back for all it has given them, Zelensky said, after meeting with a panel of the super-rich businessmen, including Rinat Akhmetov, Ihor Kolomoisky, and Oleksandr Yaroslavsky.
The president implored Ukrainian oligarchs to help the country’s pensioners with extra payments, he said, adding that the health sector needed their support too: “This country has fed you for many years, now it’s time for you to help it,” Zelensky said on ICTV. “We need money for medications. We need Hr 12-13 billion ($450 million.) We need 500 ambulances for hospitals.”
The National Bank of Ukraine says it will postpone introduction of capital buffers and the stress testing of banks, Interfax-Ukraine reported. The extra measures are designed to support the financial system and minimize the potential negative impact of coronavirus (COVID-19), the regulator’s website stated.
The central bank also said it had spent up to $1 billion in supporting the hryvnia since the start of 2020, and that its foreign exchange reserves exceed $25 billion. Enough to Stabilize the currency and ride out the fluctuations, it stated.
The NBU said banks can refuse to pay dividends until July, amounting to a tax break for some state-owned banks. It also said it was ready to increase the norm of its foreign exchange reserves, and was ready to support banks with liquidity if needed. The NBU also reduced the national currency reference rate on March 17 to Hr 27.03 to the dollar. Some money exchange outlets in Kyiv were selling the dollar for as high as Hr 28.9 on the same day.
Coronavirus will significantly affect the export of Ukrainian agricultural goods, a major agroholding company has said, contradicting the positions of officials who’ve argued Ukraine will see little economic impact. Grain exports account for more than a third of Ukrainian foreign currency earnings. It is difficult to imagine how much they could fall, but the impact will be significant, the CEO of IMC holding and president of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club, Alex Lissitsa, told Interfax-Ukraine.
“The blow will be significant. Ukrainian agricultural exports are a significant part of all Ukrainian exports – more than $20 billion annually and therefore even a drop of 10%, 15%, or 20% could amount to minus $4 billion of foreign exchange revenues in the state treasury. And this is quite a significant indicator for our weak economy,” Lissitsa said.
Meanwhile, SkyUp Airlines is evacuating some Ukrainians from Egypt, the Foreign Minister of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Facebook. The low-cost carrier has stepped up in recent weeks, evacuating hundreds of its citizens from virus-stricken locations abroad. 730 citizens of Ukraine are still quarantined at a hotel in the Egyptian Red Sea city of Sharm El Sheikh. The government said other Ukrainians would be repatriated on chartered flights.
The Foreign Ministry says it’s currently working with tour operators and airlines to help more Ukrainians get home. Kuleba mentioned that 105 Ukrainian citizens were stuck in Sri Lanka. “We learn about our new compatriots abroad. We deal with them. The embassy informs me of the steps taken,” the minister wrote. Some Ukrainians returned home on chartered planes have been asked to self isolate at home.
Over 50,000 Ukrainians returned home in the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian State Border Service stated on March 17. Nearly 86,500 people crossed Ukraine’s state border in the same period, either entering or exiting the country. People entering Ukraine are required to answer questions about their health and have their body temperatures measured, officials said. Some medical experts have warned that people without symptoms might be driving the spread of coronavirus as they travel.
