NBU reserves grow 13.5% in May

The National Bank of Ukraine’s international reserves grew 13.5% mom (+USD 3.3 bln) in May to USD 27.81 bln, said Valeriy Lytvytsky, head of the NBU’s advisory council, according to Interfax – the first month of growth this year. Andrii Parkhomenko: The USD 3.3 bln growth in reserves is partly attributed to the receipt of a part of the second tranche (USD 1.3 bln) of the IMF standby loan, and the NBU’s purchasing of excess currency on the interbank market (USD 0.1 bln). The origin of the remaining USD 1.9 bln is not clear, so far; we are waiting for the official release by the central bank at the beginning of the next week to clarify the issue.