The full-scale invasion has become the most exhausting challenge for Ukraine’s economy. Nevertheless, the Ukrainian business sector with strong medium-sized private enterprises has demonstrated outstanding resilience despite economic downfall, missile and drone attacks, and electricity outages. The IER research asserts that in the last two decades, Ukraine has grown a new private sector that secures Ukraine’s resistance.

Amid full-scale Russian military aggression, Ukrainian businesses have showcased remarkable resilience, buoyed by enduring optimism even as uncertainty clouds the horizon. This sentiment emerges from the monthly surveys conducted by the Institute of Economic Research and Political Consultations (IER), providing valuable insights into the ever-changing landscape of business activity in times of war.

The full-scale war that Russia waged against Ukraine has drastically impacted the situation in Ukraine. Many Ukrainians were forced to flee the country and seek safer regions or countries: according to estimates, about 8 million became refugees, while around 5 million are internally displaced people

“Keep your chin up” is the headline of the June issue of the New Monthly Enterprise Survey, a #NRES conducted by the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting since May 2022. From June 15 to June 30, 2023, the heads of 530 enterprises located in 21 out of 27 regions of Ukraine answered questions about the current state of affairs at enterprises and their expectations for further business development.

Pál Szinyei Merse: The Balloon // public domain

A full-scale war became an existential challenge for the Ukrainian industry. Manufacturing enterprises have been forced to actively cut expenditures for innovation, shifting the focus from development to survival. At the same time, businesses see opportunities to restore innovative activity with the help of industry support programs, fiscal incentives, and other measures at the state level.

Ukraine has introduced numerous reforms between 2014-2019, which support macro-financial sustainability of the country. As a result, even during COVID-19, Ukraine went stronger with debt-to-GDP ratio at about 50%, sound banking system, improved corporate governance and higher openness and transparency. This helped Ukraine to remain resilient since the beginning of full-scale invasion by Russia.

Millions of people and thousands of businesses in Ukraine remain without electricity every day due to damage to infrastructure damage caused by Russian shelling. For two months in a row, the Russian Federation has been launching rocket attacks on the civilian infrastructure of Ukraine every week. The target of this damage was the network of substations and transformers that provide electricity transmission from generating plants.