Ukraine is planning to issue USD 2.4 bln Eurobonds in 2021, NBU head says

Ukrainian government is expecting to receive about USD
2.2 bln from the IMF (in three tranches), and is planning to issue Eurobonds
for USD 2.4 bln in 2021, National Bank governor Kyrylo Shevchenko told Reuters,
as published on Feb. 2. He also revealed his expectations that foreign
investors would purchase local government bonds for about USD 1 bln this year.

Recall, Ukraine’s state budget for 2021 assumes
Ukraine will borrow net UAH 128 bln (USD 4.4 bln) on the domestic market and
net UAH 106 bln (USD 3.6 bln) abroad.

Alexander Paraschiy: The
Ukrainian government will have to repay Eurobonds for USD 2 bln and will have
to return USD 1.4 bln of loans to the IMF this year. The government’s plan to
raise USD 4.6 bln from Eurobonds and the IMF imply Ukraine’s net borrowing from
these two sources will be just USD 1.2 bln, or one third of the external
funding plan for 2021. This, as well as our belief that three IMF loan tranches
this year are impossible, allows us to expect that the government will have to
offer much more in the way of international Eurobonds than Shevchenko
indicates.

Meanwhile, Shevchenko’s expectations that
non-residents will invest USD 1 bln in Ukraine’s local bonds looks rather
conservative: non-residents have increased their position in local bonds by
about USD 0.4 bln already in January and early February.