The deficit of Ukraine's balance of payments in 2012 came to $4.174 billion, which is 70% up on the deficit seen in 2011 ($2.455 billion), reads a posting on the NBU's Web site.

The deficit of the balance of payment in December 2012 stood at UAH $838 million, a rise of nine times on December 2011 ($93 million) and by 55.5% on November 2012 ($539 million).

"In 2012, the deficit of the consolidated balance of payments totaled $4.2 billion [$2.5 billion in 2011]. The deficit of the current account in 2012 expanded to $14.4 billion or 8% of GDP [in 2011 $10.2 billion or 6.2% of GDP]. The main reason of this was the increase in the deficit of the balance of trade with goods to $20.5 billion compared to $16.3 billion in 2011," reads the report.

NBU said that the deficit of the current account grew by 40.6% in 2012 on 2011: in December 2012 the deficit of the current account amounted to $1.951 billion, which was 63.1% up on the deficit in December 2011 ($1.196 billion) and 2.3 times up on November 2012 ($850 million).

"In the conditions of an unfavorable situation on global commodity markets [apart from agricultural products] and the slowdown in exports of goods [to 0.5%] high investment needs of the Ukrainian economy determined the continuation of growth in imports of goods with the higher pace [5.3%]," reads the report.

As for the account of transactions with capital and financial transactions, the report says that its surplus in 2012 grew by 31.4%, to $10.233 billion. The surplus in December 2012 reached $1.113 billion, which is 1% up on December 2011 ($1.103 billion) and 3.6 times up on November 2012 ($311 million).

"The increase in the surplus [of the account of transactions with capital and financial transactions] was linked to the more active attraction of funds by the government, a rise in inflow of investment and debt resources to the real economic sector and a reduction in the outflow of cash foreign currency to the off-bank sector," reads the report.

Foreign direct investment inflows in 2012 were up by 14.5%, to $8.3 billion (94% of this went to the real economic sector). Investment abroad reached $1.2 billion.

The report says that the net foreign direct investment inflow in 2012 shrank by 0.45, to $7.045 billion.

Net borrowing by the government in 2012 grew to $2.5 billion from $1.1 billion in 2011.

"The key instrument of fund borrowing [by the government] was eurobonds [the balance of transactions with them in 2012 came to $3.4 billion compared to $1.7 billion in 2011]. The interest of nonresidents to government domestic loan bonds resumed: net acquisition came to $300 million [in 2011 government domestic loan bonds held by nonresidents fell by $700 million], while turnover on transactions almost doubled," reads the report.

NBU said that net borrowing on credits and bonds of the real economic sector in 2012 came to $6.6 billion ($5.2 billion in 2011): mainly long-term loans were taken.

"The banking sector continued cutting its external debt, although not so actively as in the previous years, by $3 billion [the level of coverage of payments under loans taken earlier and bonds by new borrowing grew to 77%]," says the report.

The central bank said that growth in cash foreign currency in the off-bank sector narrowed by 23.3%, to $8.753 billion: in the first half of 2012 growth amounted to $1.7 billion, and it stirred up in autumn ($5 billion), which was linked to parliamentary election and the strengthening of devaluation expectations.

December 2012, growth of cash foreign currency in the off-bank sector slowed to $651 million along with the improvement of devaluation expectations.

"During the year the government and NBU on time and in full paid on the IMF loan [$3.4 billion of the principal]. International reserves shrank by $7.6 billion and came to $24.5 billion as of January 1, 2013, which allows financing future imports during 2.8 months," reads the report.