KIEV, Dec. 20 ??“ Ukraine??™s economy may slow down its expansion by two percentage points this year due to a major hike in natural gas prices, the World Bank said Thursday.

Ukraine??™s economy may grow between 1.5% and 3.5% on the year in 2006 after the price hike, compared with between 3.5% and 5.5% before the price hike, the bank said.