Ukrainian hryvnia's devaluation taking place due to impact from market factors - NBU

MOSCOW. March 13 (Interfax) - The dynamics of the hryvnia's exchange rate against the dollar and the euro since the beginning of March reflects the impact of market factors, the press service of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) told local media in reply to a query, reaffirming the NBU's readiness to promptly react in order to keep the forex market stable.

"Net demand for foreign currency has increased over the past few weeks as a result of growing geopolitical uncertainty and its impact on the forex market. Accordingly, the hryvnia's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar has weakened," media outlets quoted the regulator as saying in its commentary.

"The euro and many other currencies of countries that are Ukraine's main trading partners have also weakened against the U.S. dollar. As a result, the hryvnia's exchange rate against these currencies has been relatively stable," the NBU said.

The dynamics of the hryvnia's exchange rate reflects the impact of market factors, with the exchange rate acting as a shock absorber, in line with the managed flexibility mechanism, it said.

"At the same time, maintaining the sustainability of the forex market remains the NBU's task. The NBU stands ready to swiftly react to changes in the situation on the forex market, using its toolkit and the available international reserves," it said.

Ukraine's international reserves stood at nearly $55 billion as of March 1, 2026, covering 5.7 months of future imports, it said.

As reported, the hryvnia has weakened against the dollar following the start of the military operation by Israel and the United States against Iran on February 28, 2026. The hryvnia's official exchange rate weakened from UAH 43.2081/$1 to UAH 44.1636/$1, hitting a new all-time low. Meanwhile, the hryvnia's exchange rate against the euro remains stable at UAH 50.9560/EUR1, versus UAH 51.0244/EUR1 as of the beginning of the month.