The dollar exchange rate on the interbank reached a record 39.95 UAH/$, but aid from the United States will stop the growth

On Friday, the interbank dollar rate increased by 0.7% from 39.62-39.65 to 39.91-39.95 UAH/$ (+1% for the week, +1.8% for the month), despite on the news about the intentions of the US Congress to vote for providing aid to Ukraine.

The increase in the exchange rate is due to the reduction of currency offers from the NBU in the second half of the Friday session and the excess of demand over supply. Following the interbank rate, the cash dollar rate increased from UAH 39.5-40 to UAH 40.1-40.5 over the weekend.

During April 15-19, the National Bank increased the sale of currency compared to the previous week by $317 million to $695.1 million, but did not buy currency itself. In total, in 2024, the NBU purchased $104.6 million and sold $7.463 billion.

The US Congress on Saturday supported bills on providing aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but on Tuesday they must be voted on by the Senate and then signed by the US President. The receipt of aid from the USA will significantly strengthen the budget of Ukraine and support the stability of the exchange rate.

The draft law adopted by Congress provides for the allocation of $60.8 billion in aid to Ukraine, namely:

• $7.9 billion in financial assistance to the budget of Ukraine with the possibility of debt write-off,
• $48.4 billion of military roads.

At the same time, military aid will be distributed as follows:

• $19.8 billion - replenishment of the US Army's weapons stockpile,
• $14.8 billion - military training, exchange of intelligence data, etc.,
• $13.8 billion - procurement of weapons for Ukraine under the USAI program,
• $7.8 billion - transfer of weapons from US Army stockpiles under the PDA program (+ $3.9 billion - balance from 2022/23),
• $1.6 billion - purchase of weapons for Ukraine under the FMF program.

The bill also contains a requirement for the US President to provide Ukraine with ATACMS missiles with a range of up to 300 km and a condition for the AP and the Pentagon to provide a draft strategy to help Ukraine (the so-called "Victory Plan") within 45 days.

The provision of financial and military aid to Ukraine will be a signal that in the war with the Russian Federation, Ukraine has the support of not only Europe, but also the United States, which leaves no hope for Russian victories on the battlefield, and therefore increases the pressure on the Russian authorities to end the military confrontation.