Ukraine Government Predicts 26% Inflation for 2015 – Prime Minister

According to Ukrainian Prime Minister Yatsenyuk, the inflation is related to exchange rate and the administrative price growth.

KIEV (Sputnik) – The Ukrainian government predicts 26 percent inflation in 2015, the country's prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Saturday.

"The inflation is objectively related to exchange rate and the administrative price growth. We assess the inflation for the current year to be at 26 percent," Yatsenyuk said during a government meeting.

The government also predicts the exchange rate to be at 21 hryvnias per dollar. Currently the rates stand at 25 hryvnias per dollar, according to Yatsenyuk.

In January, Ukraine's annual inflation rate reached 24.9 percent.

The internal conflict in Ukraine, which escalated after Kiev launched a military operation against eastern Ukrainian independence supporters in April 2014, has had a direct impact on the country's economy.

The country's authorities tried to rescue the deteriorating economy with international loans. Ukraine currently owes billions of dollars to international creditors, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

On December 31, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a law on the state budget for 2015. The budget is based on an inflation rate of 13.1 percent. Yatsenyuk stated that the budget would be reviewed in February depending on negotiations with international financial institutions.