KIEV, Dec. 17 – The Board of the National Bank of Ukraine on December 17 decided to retain its refinancing rate at 22%, the NBU said in a press release.

According to the report, the NBU believes that the current monetary conditions should be retained to hinder inflation expectations.

"The NBU Board understands the existing risks of strengthening the pressure on prices. The key source of the pressure is retaining of low demand on Ukrainian exported goods. The cycle for increasing the refinancing rate by the Federal Reserve of the United States first since 2006 and devaluation of the currencies of countries that are trade partners of Ukraine also bring risks. Another risk of inflation growth is the possible increase of the excise duty on alcohol and tobacco," the central bank said.