A bit of good and bad news this week from Ukraine: the familiar mix which keeps investors wondering whether to put money into a vast and undeveloped economy on Europe’s borders – or take it out.
An International Monetary Fund mission ended a two-week visit to Kyiv without reaching a staff-level agreement with Ukraine – casting doubt over whether the cash-strapped country would receive the next slice of its $15.3 billion IMF loan. But Thanos Arvanitis, IMF mission chief for Ukraine, went on record to say that one of the hardest-hit economies in the world in the 2009 recession was rebounding “better than expected.”
Even if a macro-economc deal is reached not everybody will be satisfied. The IMF made no public mention about the ugly side of Ukrainian business – including foreign companies’ complaints over corruption and over rising state interference on Ukraine’s grain market. Anna Derevyanko, head of the European Business Association, a business advocacy group in Ukraine, said the Fund expressed concern about the issues during discussions.
"The economic indicators look good and we also see strong long-term growth prospeccts, but on the ground we don't see major investment climate improvement. During the past year, businesses are facing increasing fiscal pressure and corruption from the side of state officials. All of this is hurting Ukraine's fiscal stability," Derevyanko added.
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