Ukrainian economy contracts by 1.3%

Ukraine's gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 1.3 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2013, the country's statistical agency said Tuesday. Official figures released by the State Statistic Service showed Ukraine's nominal GDP amounted to 49.07 billion U.S. dollars in the July-September period of 2013. The economy's quarterly plunge was 0.3 percent, the agency said on its website. On a yearly basis, Ukraine's GDP contracted by 1.1 percent in the first quarter of 2013, and by 1.3 percent in the second. Despite the poor economic performance in January-September, the 2013 state budget has forecast the country's GDP to grow by 3.4 percent this year, while the Finance Ministry expects growth of 1-1.5 percent.