Level of shadow economy up to 30% of GDP in 2020 – Economy Ministry

The level of the shadow economy in Ukraine in 2020 amounted to 30% of the official GDP, compared with 27% of GDP in 2019, according to the analytical note of the Ministry of Economy.

"According to preliminary estimates, the level of the shadow economy in 2020 amounted to 30% of the volume of official GDP, which is 3 p.p. more compared to the figure of 2019," the ministry said on the website.

According to the ministry, two of the four methods for calculating the shadow economy recorded an increase in the level of "shadow" compared to 2019: the method of unprofitable enterprises – by 7 percentage points, to 27% of official GDP, and the monetary method – by 1 percentage point, to 31% of GDP.

At the same time, the ministry notes that for certain types of economic activity (foreign economic activity), companies have shown an unjustifiably high growth in the unprofitableness of enterprises.

At the same time, the method "household expenditures – retail turnover" showed a decrease in the level of the shadow economy – by 3 p.p., to 22% of GDP, and according to the electric method, the reduction was 2 p.p., to 23% of GDP, the Ministry of Economy said.

"All types of economic activity, in addition to financial and insurance, showed a tendency towards an increase in the level of the shadow economy against the background of growth in the volume of losses of enterprises of these foreign economic activities over 2020 in the conditions of the forced limitation of their production activity. Most of all, the share of the shadow sector grew in the foreign economic activity "Operations with real estate" (by 17 percentage points, to 41% of gross value added in foreign economic activity), in "Transport, warehousing, postal and courier activities" (by 14 percentage points, to 48%), in extracting industry and quarrying (by 9 p.p., to 41%)," the ministry said.

At the same time, in the sector of financial and insurance activities, the ministry recorded a tendency to reduce the "shadow" in 2020 – by 4 p.p., to 23% of the volume of gross value added in foreign economic activity.

Source: www.en.interfax.com.ua