Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said real gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the country's economy over the first eight months of this year was close to zero. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sputnik Kazakhstan.
According to a World Bank forecast published on October 6, Ukraine's GDP growth will slow to 1.2% in 2026. This would be the lowest rate of economic growth in the past four years.
Statement in parliament
"Based on the results of the first eight months, real GDP growth in the economy was close to zero," Serhiy Marchenko said in a speech in Ukraine's parliament. His report was broadcast live by the "Rada" TV channel.
Military spending and budget deficit
Earlier, Ukraine's Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi said that 27 billion dollars is missing to finance military spending in 2026. According to him, Kyiv plans to find about 7 billion dollars on its own through reallocating budget funds and cutting spending. The remaining 20 billion dollars is expected to be attracted with the help of international partners.
Ukrainian authorities are trying to cover the budget deficit through external financing. However, in Western countries, the issue of allocating new aid packages is decided only after lengthy discussions. At the same time, international partners have frequently reminded Ukraine of the need to intensify the search for sources of financing from its own funds.