National Bank: Ukrainian businesses report more pessimistic outlook due to labor shortages.

Ukrainian enterprises report that a serious shortage of personnel is contributing to a more pessimistic economic outlook, according to the October edition of a monthly survey published by Ukraine's National Bank on Nov.

1. "A significant shortage of qualified personnel is holding back economic activity," the National Bank said. Other factors that influenced business expectations included security risks, rising fuel prices, and logistical restrictions for export.

Expectations on economic activity fell from 50.1 points in September to 49.6 points in October. The National Bank considers 50 points to be a neutral assessment of expectations of economic activity. The construction industry had the largest fall, from 50.6 points to 44.8 points over the last month.

They expect to see a reduction in construction volumes, a continued decrease in the total number of employees, and fewer available contractors.   The most optimistic sector was trade. Trade businesses cited the stable functioning of the country's energy system as a reason for optimism, but also expressed concerns about the number of available employees.

The survey was held between Oct.

5 and Oct.

24, and was based on the responses of 505 businesses.

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News Editor

Elsa Court is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent.

She was previously an intern at the Kyiv Post and has a Master's in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University.

Before joining the Kyiv Independent, she worked at the Netherlands Red Cross programme to arrange hosts for Ukrainian refugees and as a freelance writer and editor.

Elsa is originally from the UK and is based in the Netherlands.