Ukraine expects a $5 billion IMF loan to be approved on June 5, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said in an interview with Reuters. The first tranche of $1.9 billion may be disbursed the following day. Ukraine needs the loans to weather an economic shock caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Gross domestic product could fall by 12% in the second quarter of this year, according to a preliminary estimate, Shmyhal said.
The European Union approved disbursement of 500 million in macro-financial assistance to Ukraine. The EU says it has now provided Ukraine with 3.8 billion euros worth of loans to the country since 2014.
The European Commission stated in a press release: “Ukraine remains high on the European agenda. We continue political, financial and technical support, especially during this time of crisis, to support Ukraine’s reform agenda for building a more resilient economy. Under the EU’s fourth macro-financial assistance programme Ukraine has completed necessary reform benchmarks and we are preparing a disbursement of EUR 500 million. As part of helping our neighbours cope with the fallout of the pandemic, we will provide Ukraine with further emergency MFA assistance of EUR 1.2 billion.”
Ukraine plans to start lifting its entry ban on foreigners imposed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Foreign Minister Kuleba has said. UNIAN reported that the minister had said Ukraine plans to lift the entry ban but didn’t give a timeline. Since March only foreigners with a Ukrainian residence permit have been allowed to enter the country, and they have to self-isolate for two weeks. “The Ukrainian government is gradually lifting restrictions imposed over the coronavirus pandemic, and we are resuming operations at border checkpoints,” he said at a joint press conference with his Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó in Budapest on May 29.
The Infrastructure Ministry will open up full navigation of the Dnipro River from June 1. This follows the completion of a major project with state-owned enterprise Ukrvodshliakh to overhaul the Kaniv shipping lock that allows for more traffic on the river. Infrastructure Minister Vladyslav Krykliy said that the shipping locks of the Dnipro cascade were constructed more than 50 years ago, and their overhaul was delayed from the 1990s due to a lack of public funds.
SkyUp airlines says it is essential to abolish VAT on domestic flights to maintain reasonable ticket prices for passengers. Carriers operating inside Ukraine now more than ever need the government to abolish VAT on tickets, the airline’s press service said on Thursday, May 28, noting that it still intended to further
The low-cost carrier stated: “The development of internal air transport remains important for us. Before the crisis caused by the pandemic, we regulated the cost of interregional flights so that every Ukrainian could get to Lviv, Kharkiv or Kyiv for UAH 500-700. We could afford such a price level on internal flights, compensating their unprofitability due to international destinations. Today, because of the impossibility to fully resume international transport, this balance is violated. That is why we need the government support, so the future of internal air transportation is now completely dependent on the actions of the authorities.”
Ukraine recorded 429 new cases of COVID-19 over the past day, 495 recoveries and 10 new deaths. The National Security and Defense Council says that some 13,198 people are currently infected with COVID-19 in Ukraine. The disease has claimed 679 lives in Ukraine while 8,934 people have recovered.
Russia’s GDP plunged by an estimated 12% year-on-year in April, which was declared a nonworking month to fight the coronavirus pandemic, the Economic Development Ministry said in a business activity report published Thursday evening. This followed growth of 0.8% in March, 2.6% in February and 1.6% in January, according to revised data.
