OREANDA-NEWS. April 06, 2010. Mr. Max Alier, Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Ukraine, issued the following statement:

“An IMF mission headed by Mr. Thanos Arvanitis visited Kyiv during March 24-April 2 to discuss economic policies that could be supported by a Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF.  The mission found the economic outlook for Ukraine to be strengthening, with signs of a gradual resumption of growth. The current account deficit has narrowed, the currency has been broadly stable, and core inflation, while still high in comparison to many other countries, is falling.

“The mission made significant progress in understanding the 2010 budget priorities of the government. It also made notable progress in discussions on measures to further strengthen confidence in the banking system, including through the timely completion of bank recapitalization, and further improvements of the legal and regulatory environment. However, a number of outstanding issues remain, notably with regard to fiscal policy. Discussions on these issues will continue in the coming weeks.”