Ukraine’s GDP fell 29.1% in 2022 during Russia’s invasion

KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 29.1% in 2022 as Russia’s full-scale invasion battered the economy, the state statistics service said late on Wednesday.

The final 2022 GDP figure was slightly better than the 30% drop previously forecast by the government.

Moscow’s Feb. 2022 invasion has killed tens of thousands, uprooted millions, damaged heavy industry, the power grid and the agriculture sector, and resulted in the loss of swathes of land in the south and east.

Ukraine now has only highly restricted access to the Black Sea ports that are vital for grain and metals exports, the mainstays of Ukraine’s export-led economy.

The government says GDP may grow 1% in 2023 due to an improving situation in the transport, retail and construction sectors.

The economy ministry said earlier this year that exports had fallen 35% in 2022 from the year before, and that physical volumes were down 38.4%.

Ukraine’s grain crop fell to 53 million tonnes in 2022 from a record 86 million tonnes in 2021 due to the invasion.

Another key part of economy, the metals sector, reduced steel production by almost 71% after several leading plants were destroyed or occupied.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Tom Balmforth and Christina Fincher)