Ukraine expects IMF mission's visit in late March, says economy minister

The Ukrainian government expects another visit of a mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in late March to continue the discussion on the stand-by arrangement with Ukraine, Economic Development and Trade Minister Ihor Prasolov has said.

"It is expected that the mission will most likely come at the end of March... to begin to prepare a draft memorandum. We are cautiously optimistic," he said at the 9th Investment Conference organized by Dragon Capital in Kyiv on Wednesday.

"I think we will find a solution to the issues related to the exchange rate of (the hryvnia), tariffs of the deficit of Naftogaz Ukrainy. We have good expectations," said Prasolov, who also heads the Council of the National Bank of Ukraine.

He refrained from further comments, saying only that he expected the recession in the Ukrainian economy in the third and fourth quarters of last year to change to a positive trend.

As reported, the IMF mission visited Kyiv January 29 through February 12 to discuss economic policies that could be supported by the IMF with the SBA. Ukraine's First Deputy Prime Minister Serhiy Arbuzov said on January 14 that Kyiv intended to open a new program of financial cooperation with the IMF worth SDR 10 billion. The previous Ukraine-IMF SBA, also worth SDR 10 billion, was formally terminated in December 2012.

It was opened late in July 2010, but the country succeeded in getting two tranches worth a total of SDR 2.25 billion ($3.4 billion). The program was frozen at the stage of the second review in the spring of 2011.