MOSCOW, January 29. /TASS/. The National Bank of Ukraine announced the start of an easing cycle in its monetary policy, cutting the key policy rate by 0.5 percentage points to 15%, according to a statement on the regulator’s website.

The regulator noted that "this decision reflects a sustained decline in inflationary pressure and a reduction in risks related to external financing, and is consistent with bringing inflation back to the 5% target."

Under the updated macroeconomic forecast, the statement said, "inflation is expected to remain moderate in 2026 (7.5%) and to stay close to the 5% target thereafter, with the target to be reached by mid-2028."

The National Bank of Ukraine believes that the anticipated volume of external assistance will be sufficient to finance the budget deficit without monetary issuance and to maintain international reserves at a level adequate to support the stability of the foreign exchange market.

The regulator also recalled that at the end of 2025 the EU decided to provide Ukraine with 90 bln euro in financial assistance in 2026-2027. Support for Ukraine, the regulator said, will also continue under the existing ERA Loans credit facility (with servicing and repayment funded from revenues that the European Commission unlawfully derives from reinvesting frozen Russian assets). "Negotiations are also ongoing on a new IMF program totaling $8.1 bln," the statament said.

In October 2025, amid a worsening energy deficit and the risks it posed, the regulator decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 15.5%, where it had remained since March of the previous year.