Ukraine Boosts International Trade 40% in 2011

Kyiv, March 27, 2012. In 2011 Ukraine increased its international trade by 40 percent, reported the Chairman of the State Customs Service of Ukraine Ihor Kaletnyk. The total amount of international trade of Ukraine in 2011 reached USD 152 billion.

In 2011 trade between Ukraine and Kazakhstan equaled USD 4.4 billion, which is twice the 2010 amount. This figure is a 20 year record. The Speaker of the Ukrainian parliament Volodymyr Lytvyn provided this information to the journalists during his official visit to Almaty on March 26, 2012.

Notably, in 2011 Ukraine also expanded its international trade with the neighboring Poland. The 30 percent increase resulted in USD 6 billion trade volume over 2011, informed the Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov earlier in the year.

The volume of trade with Russia – one of the key international trade partners of Ukraine – surpassed USD 50 billion in 2011, despite the political tensions between the two countries.

Ukraine’s trade with two of the world’s biggest economies – China and the USA – also grew significantly over the past year. Trade with China came to over USD 10 billion, advancing by nearly 35 percent. In 2011 trade between Ukraine and the USA grew 54 percent (totaling USD 2.4 billion).

The EU is another strategic trade partner of Ukraine. The Union’s trade with Ukraine in 2011 constituted USD 44 billion, demonstrating a 36 percent growth, reported Ihor Kaletnyk. The British Ambassador to Ukraine Lee Turner blogged that the UK – Ukraine trade increased by 24 percent (over USD 1.4 billion).

Moreover, in 2011 Ukraine notably expanded its trade relations with Spain, Georgia, Brazil, and Belarus. Ukraine – Spain trade showed 88 percent increase (a total of USD 1.7 billion). Spain declared its willingness to simplify customs procedures while performing trade operations with Ukraine.

Ukrainian trade with Georgia grew by 40 percent in 2011 (over the period of the first nine months), according to the Ukrainian Ambassador to Georgia Vasyl Tsybenko. Formerly, the President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych spoke of the 30 percent raise in trade between Ukraine and Brazil over the first nine months of 2011.

Additionally, Ukraine continues to advance its trade ties with neighboring Belarus. In 2011 international trade figures between the two countries grew threefold, reaching USD 6 billion, informed Adviser to the President of Ukraine Anatoliy Kinakh.

Furthermore, Ihor Kaletnyk reported that Ukraine’s international trade in January 2012 amounted to USD 10 billion – one billion above last year’s figure (more than 11 percent increase).