Ukraine hopes IMF will approve new tranche by end-August

Ukrainian Finance Minister Oleksandr Danyliuk hopes that the IMF executive board will consider providing the third loan tranche to Ukraine under Extended Funds Facility (EFF) program by the end of August, he told a local television network on August 11. He said that the IMF board meetings will be scheduled for the fourth week of August, after the vacation season, and he hopes that Ukraine will be included in their agenda for that week.

Alexander Paraschiy: We expect the IMF board will release its August schedule by the end of next week and we’ll be able to confirm whether Ukraine is on its agenda. It’s hard for us to believe, however, that a positive decision will be reached soon, in light of the recent history of Ukraine’s cooperation with the fund. In the last 18 months, Ukraine should have received six tranches from the IMF under the EFF program (at a total amount of USD 11 bln). Instead, Ukraine was able to secure only two tranches, the latest of which was provided 12 months ago.