Ukraine has sharply raised its benchmark refinancing rate by 10.5 percentage points to 30 per cent, in a desperate move to temper spiralling inflation and halt its sinking currency.
乌克兰将其基准再融资利率急剧提升了10.5个百分点至30%，这一绝望举措是为了抑制加速上升的通货膨胀，并制止汇率的暴跌。
The war in the east of the country has plunged Ukraine into financial crisis, and the central bank’s decision to raise its main interest rate from 19.5 per cent, announced on Tuesday, adds to a flurry of currency and capital controls it has recently imposed amid capital flight. It raised rates from 14 per cent just a month ago.
乌克兰东部的战事已经令该国陷入一场金融危机，由于资本外逃，乌克兰央行(National Bank of Ukraine)最近已实施了诸多货币和资本控制举措。该行周二宣布将主要利率从19.5%提升至30%，就是这些举措中的最新一例。仅仅一个月前，该行还将利率设置在14%的水平上。
“Given the situation that the threat of inflation has risen strongly . . . in order to stabilise the situation, the Monetary Policy Committee recommended . . . to raise the rate,” Reuters quoted Ukraine National Bank governor Valeria Gontareva as saying.
路透社(Reuters)援引乌克兰央行行长瓦莱里娅•甘达列娃(Valeria Gontareva)表示：“考虑到通胀威胁已急剧升高……为稳定局面，货币政策委员会(Monetary Policy Committee)建议……提升利率。”
Capital Economics described the move as a “desperate attempt . . . to regain control of the currency”, which has dropped more than 40 per cent since the start of this year, on top of a 40 per cent drop in 2014.
凯投宏观(Capital Economics)称此举是一种“试图重新控制汇率的……绝望努力”。自今年初以来，乌克兰货币已经在2014年贬值40%的基础上又贬值了40%。
“This comes against the backdrop of large-scale capital flight and the fact that the authorities have no FX reserves to speak of,” the research firm added in a note.
该机构在一份报告中补充说：“推出这一举措的原因，是乌克兰出现了大规模资本外逃，而当局的外汇储备却不值一提。”
Ms Gontareva said the move was aimed at helping push the hryvnia back up to a level of 20-22 against the US dollar, around the 21.5 per dollar used to calculate the government’s annual budget.
甘达列娃表示，此举旨在帮助将格里夫纳(hryvnia)推回1美元兑20到22格里夫纳的水平，这一区间在乌克兰政府年度预算所采用的1美元兑21.5格里夫纳的水平附近。
The currency has strengthened a little to 24.25 since hitting its weakest on record of 33.75 last week. It is the world’s worst performing currency so far this year, as it was in 2014.
上周，格里夫纳先是跌至1美元兑33.75格里夫纳的创纪录低点，后来又小幅回升至24.25的水平。和2014年一样，格里夫纳是今年迄今全球表现最差的货币。
The central bank’s move come as Kiev’s lawmakers this week rushed to adopt a package of austerity and reform legislation needed to unlock a new $17.5bn International Monetary Fund bailout.
就在乌克兰央行推出这一举措之际，乌克兰的议员本周正急于通过一揽子财政紧缩及改革方面的法案，以解锁国际货币基金组织(IMF)规模为175亿美元的新一轮纾困计划。
Should the IMF board approve the bailout, some funds would be front-loaded to stabilise the state’s stretched finances and replenish depleted central bank reserves, both IMF and Ukrainian officials have said. Central bank reserves have fallen to around just one month of import coverage, compared with the three months that is considered the critical threshold.
IMF和乌克兰官员都曾表示，一旦IMF理事会批准这一纾困计划，部分资金将优先用于稳定乌克兰极度紧张的财政状况并补充已经枯竭的央行外汇储备。目前，乌克兰央行的外汇储备已跌至只够一个月进口所需的水平，远低于3个月的外汇储备警戒线。