Despite the welcome announcement by Russian president Vladimir Putin that the country has no intention of invading neighbouring Ukraine or annexing any territory, the political instability currently engulfing the latter has had a major impact on the economy.
According to Ievgen Kuzin of Fruit-Inform, the rapid devaluation of the Ukrainian hryvnia has resulted in a significant increase in prices of imported fruit and vegetables in the past three weeks, leading to a drop in consumption.
'The developments in Ukraine have caused panic among citizens, who are trying to limit their expenses,' he tells Eurofruit. 'Above all, they are spending money stocking up on basic consumer goods like grains, preserves, salt and sugar. In these conditions, many importers of fruit and vegetables are bearing serious losses.'
Ukraine-based agribusiness consultant Andriy Yarmak stressed the difficulty of foreseeing what the near future might hold in Ukraine.
'The situation is unpredictable, and so, therefore, is the impact,' he said. 'Thus far imports have declined due to the instability of the currency, but this is now starting to stabilise.'
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