The World Bank also predicted that Russia’s GDP in 2022 would fall by 11.2% due to financial sanctions imposed by the United States and its Western allies on Russian banks, state-owned enterprises and other organizations. The World Bank’s “Regional Warfare” financial report said that Eastern Europe, which includes Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova, is projected to shrink by 30.7% of GDP this year due to war shocks and the cessation of trade. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Growth in 2022 in the Central European region, which includes Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Poland and Romania, will fall to 3.5% from 4.7% previously due to the influx of refugees, higher commodity prices and the deterioration of confidence affecting demand. For Ukraine, the World Bank report estimates that more than half of the country’s businesses are closed, while others are operating at normal capacity. The closure of Black Sea shipping by Ukraine has cut off about 90% of the country’s grain exports and half of its total exports. The World Bank said the war had made economic activity impossible in many areas and halted agricultural planting and harvesting. Estimates of infrastructure damage exceeding $ 100 billion by early March – about two-thirds of Ukraine’s GDP for 2019 – are outdated “as the war rages and causes further damage”. The bank said the 45.1% contraction estimate ruled out the impact of material infrastructure destruction, but said this would mark future economic output, along with the outflow of Ukrainian refugees to other countries. The World Bank said the magnitude of Ukraine’s shrinkage was “subject to a high degree of uncertainty” about the duration and intensity of the war. A negative scenario in the report, which reflects further shocks in commodity prices and a loss of confidence in the financial markets caused by the escalation of the war, could lead to a 75% contraction in Ukraine’s GDP and a 20% contraction in Russian production. This scenario would lead to a 9% contraction in the World Bank’s Europe and Central Asia emerging markets and emerging economies – more than double the key forecast. “The Russian invasion has dealt a huge blow to the Ukrainian economy and has caused enormous damage to infrastructure,” Anna Bjerde, World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia, said in a statement. “Ukraine needs huge financial support immediately as it struggles to maintain its economy and the government to run to support Ukrainian citizens who are suffering and facing an extreme situation.” The World Bank has already raised about $ 923 million in loans and grants to Ukraine and is preparing a further support package of more than $ 2 billion. read more “Rapid assistance from the IMF and the World Bank has allowed Ukraine to pay salaries to civilians, soldiers, doctors and nurses while meeting its foreign debt obligations,” said US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who oversees the share. US control over the World Bank. , he told U.S. lawmakers during a hearing last week. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by David Lawder in Washington. Edited by Matthew Lewis and Stephen Coates Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
