Ukraine’s Finance Minister Oleksandr Danylyuk has confirmed the country’s plans to work on foreign credit markets in 2017.
“We plan to work on the foreign credit market in 2017, but not to attract a large amount of money. We will do this to send a signal that we are present on foreign credit markets,” he said during a press conference in Kyiv on Feb. 6.
Danylyuk said Ukraine would seek to raise around $500 million. At the same time, he said no final decision has been taken. He added the step was not necessary for Ukraine’s Finance Ministry.
Ukraine from 2014 through 2016 annually placed 5-year Eurobonds guaranteed by $1 billion by the U.S. government. Redemption rates in 2016 were 1.471 percent. The last time Ukraine placed a bond issue on commercial terms was in 2013: 10-year dollar-denominated Eurobonds for $1.25 billion at a 7.5 percent annual interest rate.
The program for managing state debt in 2017 approved by the Finance Ministry on Jan. 31 foresees borrowing Hr 103.907 billion on the domestic market or 54.5 percent of total borrowing and Hr 86.89 billion on foreign markets or 45.5 percent, including Hr 16 billion for the special fund from international financial institutions (IFIs).
The Finance Ministry predicts that in 2017 the share of state external debt as a portion of total state debt will amount to 66.3 percent.
