KIEV, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine will require new borrowing equivalent to 18 billion U.S. dollars in the 2018-19 financial year to maintain macroeconomic stability, the World Bank (WB) said on Tuesday.
In its "Ukraine Economic Update" study, the WB said the funds are needed to repay Ukraine's public debt and finance a fiscal deficit facing pressure from higher wages and social benefits.
About 8 billion dollars of the total sum could be raised by Ukraine from external sources and the rest domestically, the bank said.
It emphasized the need for Kiev to continue cooperation with the International Monetary Fund to raise the necessary external financing on affordable terms.
Last year, Ukraine has significantly reduced its public debt and budget deficit due to the strong revenue growth.
According to the Ukrainian Economic Development and Trade Ministry, Ukraine's debt in 2017 was down from 80.9 percent to 71.8 percent of gross domestic product and stood at 76.3 billion dollars at the end of the year.
The country's budget deficit accounted for 1.84 billion dollars in 2017, down 31.9 percent year-on-year.
