Economy recovering from coronacrisis – PM Shmyhal

The Ukrainian economy has begun to recover from the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

"In 2021, we must lay a solid foundation so that the Ukrainian economy grows at a faster pace in the years to follow. At the same time, already in the first four months of this year, we are recording positive trends, which show that the Ukrainian economy has begun to recover from coronacrisis," Shmyhal wrote on Facebook.

In April, industrial growth due to the low base effect accelerated to 13% on year, PM says, adding that at the same time, in the first four months of this year, the industry rose 1.5% y-o-y. The fastest growing is the chemical industry as well as in the furniture industry. Mechanical engineering over the same period expanded by 6.5%.

Read alsoU.S. to allocate US$155 mln in additional support to UkraineAlso, the head of government reports better consumer sentiment. In the first four months of this year, retail sales grew 14% against the same period last year.

The growth in consumption, Shmyhal added, is also correlated with the factor of growing average wages.The average nominal wage of Ukrainians in April 2021 was 30% above that recorded in April 2020. Taken inflation into account, wages increased by 20% over the year.

"The export of Ukrainian products in the first 4 months of this year were up by almost 20%. In the first quarter of 2021, the main markets for our goods are China (14.2% of total exports), Poland (7.6%), and Turkey (6.4%). Recently, eight new markets have opened, including in Africa and South America. Exporters are constantly supported through new state products and formats," added Shmyhal.

According to the head of government, the financial performance of Ukrainian enterprises in the first quarter of 2021 is one of the best over the past five years.

"Financial performance of large and medium-sized enterprises before tax amounted to UAH 166 billion in profit, compared with a UAH 4.9 billion loss for the same period last year. The share of unprofitable enterprises decreased to 27.8% of the total number of existing large and medium-sized companies (this is the lowest indicator in the first quarter over the past five years)," Shmyhal said.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukraine's GDP in January-February 2021 shrank by 2.8%, according to the Ministry of Economy.

In April, the National Bank downgraded the forecast for real GDP growth in 2021 from 4.2% to 3.8%.