The International Monetary Fund in figures released at a news conference, also said year-on-year inflation in December 2008 would reach 17%. “I have to say there is an unusual amount of uncertainty about this forecast,” said Robert Ford, IMF mission head for Ukraine. “If you ask me in two months’ time, my forecast may be different.”
Annual inflation in 2007 hit 16.6% and the government of Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has pledged to contain the figure this year to 9.6% through measures it has promised to unveil soon. Ukrainian and international experts are skeptical about this pledge, with most predicting a rate for the year of 12-15%. Year-on-year inflation stood at 21.9% in February after month-on-month rises of 2.7% in February and 2.9% in January. (Reuters)