Ukraine's central bank downgrades growth, inflation forecast

Ukraine's central bank on Thursday downgraded its forecasts for both inflation and the economic growth in the country this year, citing worsening economic environment.
"We see stability neither in the banking sector nor in the macroeconomic performance," Valeria Gontareva, Ukraine's central bank governor, said during an investment forum here.
Gontareva said that the projection of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for 2014 was revised down to a contraction of 7.5 percent from the previous estimate of a 7 percent shrink.
Meanwhile, the inflation in Ukraine is expected to reach 25 percent in 2014 against 19 percent estimated earlier, she added.
Ukraine is now experiencing its worst economic crisis since independence in 1991 due to the unrest in eastern regions and exports decline.
The country' s GDP shrank 5.1 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2014, while the consumer prices have surged 19 percent in January-October.