PM Honcharuk says 2020 budget may be revised amid hryvnia strengthening

Ukrainian Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk has said the Cabinet of Ministers in February may revise the macroeconomic forecast for 2020-2022 and amend the state budget for the next year amid the strengthening of the hryvnia, Ukraine's national currency.

"In conditions where macroeconomic conditions are actively changing, of course, the budget will be revised. This is a normal process. Obviously, we will get a new macro forecast in the first months. We will sit down with the National Bank experts and plan to react to what is happening... Entering the new budget year is a fairly clear bureaucratic process. I think we will return to this topic by February. It's too early to talk about it yet," he told one of Ukrainian TV channels.

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The prime minister does not see the beefup as a negative phenomenon.

"I would not say the strengthening of the hryvnia is a negative phenomenon. There are pros and cons. Obviously, there is a very large number of people who benefit from the strengthening of the hryvnia. Starting from the fact that the salary in dollars is increasing, you can import the same goods cheaper in hryvnia," Honcharuk said.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukrainian Minister for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture Tymofiy Mylovanov said the ministry was considering the revision of the macroeconomic forecast for 2020-2022 with regard to the hryvnia rate to the U.S. dollar.