Ukraine’s inflation rate remained at 10% in January as rising food prices kept the rate high and a series of big rate hikes by the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) have yet to have much of an impact, Ukrstat reported on February 10.  

In January 2022, consumer prices increased by 1.3% and rose generally for the year by 10%.  Core inflation for the month was 0.1% or 7.6% for the year, UBN reports .

In January, prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by 2.5%. Vegetables became more expensive by 20.5%. Prices for eggs, fruits, bread, milk, meat, rice, lard, and butter increased by 3.9%.

Overall, food prices grew by 14%. Fuel and oil prices also grew rapidly (+ 26.8%). Rail and road transport for passengers increased by 20%. Alcohol and tobacco rose by 9.3%, and education by 17.4%.

Inflation has been the main macroeconomic problem despite a strong economic performance in 2021. After being crushed in 2019, and then falling to a post-Soviet all-time low of below 2% in May 2020, inflation roared back in 2021 to peak at 11% in September before starting to drop as a series of aggressive rate hikes began to take effect. Ukraine’s consumer inflation recorded 10% on average in 2021.

To combat this problem Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers declared it will regulate prices for a number of essential foodstuffs as record inflation sweeps the country on January 12. Sugar, wheat flour, buckwheat, pasta, milk, butter, chicken eggs and poultry are all on the list of these foodstuffs.

However, Andriy Yarmak, investment officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, believes the regulations could have “either zero impact, or a negative impact on the market. Often (it) pushes market prices higher up than they would have been otherwise,” he said.