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Hryvnia forex rate fluctuations were observed in September 2016, then in August 2017, and in July 2018.
Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Oleh Churiy says the developments of the last four years show that the rate of Ukraine's national currency, the hryvnia, against foreign currencies depends on a season, therefore the rate of the U.S. dollar and the euro are now growing, while the national currency is weakening.
Read alsoNBU cuts official exchange rate to UAH 27.45 to dollar
"Seasonality depends on the agricultural period. We're an agricultural country, aren't we? Today farm produce accounts for about 45% of exports. Ukraine exports grain, being second in maize shipments. We rank first in terms of sunflower oil exports. Exports generate revenue. On the other hand, one must understand that Ukraine's economy is not entirely on the 'light side.' In particular, much of the agrarian sector is in the shadow," he said on Radio NV on August 15.
The official also added that hryvnia forex rate fluctuations were observed in September 2016, then in August 2017, and in July 2018.
"The reason is simple. The exchange rate is important to businesses and the population. They [businesses] realized that there was no reason to wait until September, so they bought the currency in August. I think the situation is the same this year. Here is a psychological impact. I would not say that this is panic, but a certain degree of nervousness exists. Fluctuations are not a sign of crisis," Churiy said.
Answering a question about causes behind the weakening of the hryvnia against the euro, he said that completely different factors affect the hryvnia-euro forex rate. In addition, all other currency rates are derivatives of the dollar rate.
"All other rates derive from the dollar. Recently, the situation on emerging markets has been rather unstable. During the month, the hryvnia lost somewhat 4% of its value, while the South African currency became weaker by 10%," he added.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the central bank set the following official exchange rates of the hryvnia against leading foreign currencies for August 15: US$100 cost UAH 2,745.8922, while EUR 100 cost UAH 3,131.9646.