Ukraine's central bank (NBU) kept its key policy rate at 15% on Thursday, citing
war-related challenges, rising energy prices and higher corporate costs. The NBU
said it is prepared to raise rates if needed to anchor inflation expectations
and steer inflation back toward its 5% target. The decision, the bank said,
reflects a sufficiently tight monetary stance and took into account strong
demand for hryvnia savings instruments and mitigation of risks linked to the
Middle East war and constrained external financing. Annual inflation eased to
8.2% in May from 8.6% in April, which the NBU attributed to seasonal factors,
but it expects inflation to remain near current levels in the coming months and
accelerate later this year. The bank flagged energy price rises, prior hryvnia
weakness and wage-driven cost pressures as upside risks and projects year-end
inflation around 9.4% and 6.5% in 2027.
