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5.2.2 Current account dynamics
5.2.3 Gross international reserves
Ukraine's international reserves in May stand at $27B at the beginning of May, the level of international reserves in Ukraine amounted to about $27B. According to Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Serhiy Nikolaychuk, Ukraine spends $2B a month to meet the needs of defence, critical imports, and settlements with payment systems. Ukraine's budget has received about $5B since the beginning of the war from its foreign partners. However, in the long run, this system is unviable, said Nikolaychuk. The Deputy Head of the NBU believes that Ukraine needs to restore the normal functioning of the foreign exchange market and return to inflation targeting and discount rates. He also noted that Ukraine's economy needs a fiscal impetus to prevent falling budget revenues in the face of significant military, humanitarian and social spending.
Ukraine's international reserves fell by another $1.5B in April. However, thanks to international assistance, the NBU will be able to maintain reserves at the proper level. "As of the beginning of May, the reserves, according to operational data, amounted to $26.6B. With sufficient international financial assistance, we will be able to maintain reserves at the proper level and even increase them," said the Head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Kyrylo Shevchenko. Shevchenko recalled that the NBU fixed the dollar exchange rate at the 29.25-hryvnia level during martial law. However, fixing the rate is a
33 UKRAINE Country Report XXXX 2018 www.intellinews.com