Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Ukraine to hike gas rates by 50% for IMF loan. -The IMF programme's approval would set in motion the release of further assistance from both Washington and the European Union.

Ukraine agreed on Wednesday to quickly hike domestic gas prices by as much as 50 percent to meet a key loan condition set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the crisis-hit ex-Soviet state.
The new Western-backed government in Kiev is seeking $15-20 billion (11-14.5 billion euros) in IMF assistance in order to balance its books and meet a series of foreign loan repayments.
An IMF team met with Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk in Kiev on Wednesday for what Ukrainian officials hoped would be a final round of talks before the package is approved in Washington next month.

The Fund has made an immediate end to Ukraine's costly gas subsidies one of its prime conditions for the programme's approval.
It also wants the central bank to stop propping up the Ukrainian currency and for the government to cut down on corruption and red tape.
A top official at Ukraine's Naftogaz state energy company said Kiev was willing to raise the price households pay for natural gas by 50 per cent as of May 1.
Naftogaz budget and planning director Yury Kolbushkin added that rates for district heating companies would go up by 40 per cent on July 1.
Kolbushkin indicated that these prices would increase still further in the coming years.
"We will publish a document that sets a schedule for rate increases through 2018," Ukrainian media quoted Kolbushkin as saying.
Ukraine's central bank has already limited its currency interventions -- a decision that has seen the hryvnia lose 26.4 per cent of its value against the dollar since the start of the year.
  • The IMF programme's approval would set in motion the release of further assistance from both Washington and the European Union.
Yatsenyuk said he expected EU officials to send 1.6 billion euros ($2.2 billion) to Kiev within two months of its approval.
The United States has also pledged $1 billion (720 million euros) in loan guarantees while Japan has promised up to $1.5 billion (1.1 billion euros).
The IMF team arrived in Kiev on March 4, initially for a 10-day mission aimed at scoping out the willingness of the new government to undertake difficult structural reforms baulked at by the ousted, pro-Kremlin president Viktor Yanukovych.
  • After being named interim prime minister last month, Yatsenyuk wasted no time in promising to eliminate many of the Soviet-era subsidies that had weighed on the country's budget.
His commitment drew warm praise from IMF mission chief Nikolai Georgiyev last week, while foreign debt markets showed confidence that Ukraine would win final approval for the loan package in a matter of weeks.
"Our cooperation with the Ukrainian authorities has been excellent," Georgiyev said on March 20.
"The authorities' comprehensive reform programme covers a wide range of issues and additional work needs to be completed to advance programme discussions."
However, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has tried to cool expectations, warning Kiev's new leaders on February 28 that they should not demand vast amounts of foreign assistance without clear justifications.
"We would certainly hope that the (Ukrainian) authorities refrain from throwing lots of numbers which are really meaningless until they've been assessed properly," Lagarde said at the time.

5 comments:

  1. Voraussetzung für IWF-Kredite ....Ukraine erhöht Gaspreise drastisch...

    Die Ukraine will den Gaspreis für die Bevölkerung ab dem 1. Mai drastisch um 50 Prozent erhöhen und damit die Voraussetzung schaffen für nötige Kredite des Internationalen Währungsfonds (IWF). Der Staatskonzern Naftogas kündigte in Kiew zudem weitere Preisanstiege für die kommenden Jahre an. Die Details lege die Regierung fest, hieß es........http://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/ukraine1340.html
    26/3/14

    ReplyDelete
  2. El FMI anuncia un paquete de ayuda de 19.500 millones de euros a Kiev....

    El Fondo ofrece crédito por un valor de entre 10.000 y 13.000 millones de euros
    El resto será desembolsado por otras instituciones internacionales
    -------


    El Fondo Monetario Internacional ha anunciado este jueves un principio de acuerdo con Ucrania para la entrega a Kiev de fondos por un valor de entre 14.000 y 18.000 millones de dólares (aproximadamente 10.000 y 13.000 millones de euros) a cambio de un programa de reformas económicas y ajustes fiscales.

    El acuerdo, según el FMI, desbloqueará créditos por parte de otras instituciones internacionales que elevarán hasta 27.000 millones (19.500 millones de euros) en dos años el total de fondos disponibles para Kiev.

    Entre las medidas de ajuste que tendrá que adoptar el Gobierno de Kiev figura una subida del precio del gas, que algunos analistas estiman de alrededor de un 50%. Se espera que las autoridades ucranias anuncien hoy el contenido del paquete de ajuste.
    http://internacional.elpais.com/internacional/2014/03/27/actualidad/1395907944_036858.html
    27/3/14

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yatsenyuk: Ukraine on brink of economic bankruptcy...

    Ukraine is standing on the verge of the economic and financial bankruptcy, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, the acting prime minister of Ukraine, said at a parliamentary session on Thursday.
    http://en.itar-tass.com/world/725500
    27/3/14

    ReplyDelete
  4. "Am Rande des Bankrotts".... Internationaler Währungsfonds rettet Ukraine vor der Pleite...

    Die Ukraine steht kurz vor der Pleite. Nun hilft der IWF mit einem milliardenschweren Rettungspaket. Die Bedingungen sind allerdings Reformen, die vielen Bürgern nicht gefallen dürften.

    Der Internationale Währungsfonds stellt der Ukraine einen Milliarden-Kredit bereit und macht so den Weg frei für weitere Hilfen des Westens. Zwischen 14 und 18 Milliarden Dollar könnten abgerufen werden, teilte der IWF in Kiew mit. Mit den von EU, Japan und USA in Aussicht gestellten Geldern kann sich die Unterstützung in den nächsten beiden Jahren auf bis zu 27 Milliarden Dollar summieren. "Die Ukraine steht am Rande des wirtschaftlichen und finanziellen Bankrotts", begründete der ukrainische Ministerpräsident Arseni Jazenjuk die Bitte um Finanzhilfen. Ohne IWF-Kredit würde die durch den Konflikt mit Russland gebeutelte Wirtschaft um bis zu zehn Prozent schrumpfen..............http://www.n24.de/n24/Nachrichten/Politik/d/4499380/internationaler-waehrungsfonds-rettet-ukraine-vor-der-pleite.html
    27/3/14

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ukraine's parliament passes anti-crisis law required for IMF bailout...

    Ukraine's parliament on Thursday voted in favour of an anti-crisis law accepting austerity measures demanded by the International Monetary Fund as part of a $14-18 billion bailout package.

    Earlier, parliament deputies failed to support the draft law despite the entreaties of the government, but later returned after a recess and approved it with a vote of 246 - 20 more than the number required.
    Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_03_27/Ukraines-parliament-passes-anti-crisis-law-required-for-IMF-bailout-6336/
    27/3/14

    ReplyDelete

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