NBU keeps key rate at 15.5%

MOSCOW. April 17 (Interfax) - The board of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has decided to raise the key policy rate from 15.5% to 16% per annum from April 18 to help maintain stability of the forex market, control inflation expectations, and gradually reduce inflation rates to 5% in 2026.

"The NBU forecast envisages that the key rate would be at 16% in the coming months and the cycle of easing the interest rate policy will resume after the price surge passes its peak and the risk of double-digit inflation entrenching decreases," Ukrainian media said on Thursday, citing an NBU press release.

If the risk rises, the bank will keep the rate at the current level longer than planned by the updated macroeconomic forecast and will be ready to take additional measures, the NBU said.

The NBU thrice increased the key rate since mid-December 2024. Prior to that, it kept the rate at 13% for six months, having lowered it from 25% in July 2023 in seven steps.

The day before the rate decision was announced, market actors differed in their prognosis of NBU actions: nearly half of them expected the rate to be kept at the current level, about the same share expected the NBU to increase the rate by 0.5 percentage points, and an insignificant number said that the rate would be increased by one percentage point.