Ukraine industrial output falls 1.5% in February

Ukraine’s industrial output fell 1.5% yoy in February
after sliding 5.1% yoy in January, the State Statistics Service reported on
March. 23. Seasonally adjusted output decreased 0.2% m/m. In 2M20, industrial
output dropped 3.1% yoy.

Manufacturing output slid 0.4% yoy in February (after
a 3.2% yoy decline in January). In particular, machinery production fell 13.2%
yoy (after a 10.5% yoy decrease in January). Metallurgy output dropped 4.3% yoy
(vs. a 10.3% yoy decline in February). Meanwhile, food production increased
6.6% yoy (vs. 2.9% yoy growth in January) and the chemical industry surged
22.5% yoy (after a 24.4% yoy advance in January).

Mining output fell 4.1% yoy in Fegruary, after
declining 4.5% yoy January In particular, coal production plunged 15.3% yoy, oil
and natural gas production slid 0.2% yoy, and iron ore output dropped 5.6% yoy.
The supply of electricity and natural gas slid 1.8% yoy in February after an
11.8% yoy drop in January.

Regionally, the steepest declines were observed in the
Ukraine-controlled Luhansk (-46.5% yoy), Zakarpattia (-13.6% yoy) and
Dnipropetrovsk (-11.2% yoy) regions. Growth was strongest in the Kherson (20.8%
yoy), Lviv (15.0% yoy) and Vinnytsia (13.8% yoy) regions.

Evgeniya Akhtyrko: February’s
slowdown in industrial decline would be an encouraging development if not for
the severde lockdown measures introduced by the government
at the end of the previous week in its attempt to counteract the spread of
coronavirus infection throughout Ukraine.

It’s already obvious that every day of the lockdown
has an extremely negative effect on economic activity, including the looming
threat of a complete shutdown of industrial enterprises.

We are observing the current developments, both in the
global and domestic economies, in order to formulate our vision on Ukraine’s
industrial development in 2020.