The World Bank has said that Ukraine’s economy will shrink by 45 percent this year.
It said the Russian invasion was responsible for the dwindling economy.
The global bank, in a statement issued in Washington on Sunday, said the war against Ukraine and sanctions on Russia are hitting economies around the globe, with emerging markets and developing countries in the Europe and Central Asia region expected to bear the brunt.
The World Bank’s Economic Update for the region released on Sunday said the region’s economy is now forecast to shrink by 4.1 percent this year, compared with the pre-war forecast of 3 percent growth. It added that the economic shocks from the war compound the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This would be the second contraction in as many years, and twice as large as the pandemic-induced contraction in 2020.
“Ukraine’s economy is expected to shrink by an estimated 45.1 percent this year, although the magnitude of the contraction will depend on the duration and intensity of the war.
Hit by unprecedented sanctions, Russia’s economy has already plunged into a deep recession with output projected to contract by 11.2 percent in 2022,” the statement said.
