Foreign trade in Ukraine’s agri-food products in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic spread

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to analyses the impact of restrictive quarantine measures 2020-2021 related to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic on foreign trade in the Ukraine’s agricultural sector. Research methods. The techniques of abstract-logical method, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, analogy and comparison were used for generalizing the theoretical and methodological aspects of the study. In analytical studies some economic and statistical methods were used in order to diagnose the dynamics of exports and imports of agri-food products (comparative analysis, averages and relative values, statistical groupings, trend analysis, graphical method, index, coefficient analysis, etc.). A number of methods of abstract-logical tools allowed to formulate intermediate and final conclusions and proposals. Research results. It was found that the domestic agrarian sector, given its current raw-export orientation, depends on the external economic situation of market demand, which was affected by restrictions related to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of quarantine measures at the global level, namely: restriction of trade transactions between states, restrictive measures on the movement of goods, closure of agri-food markets, etc. It has been proven that with the beginning of the spread of COVID-19 the conditions of trade in agri-food products in Ukraine have deteriorated. It was determined that exports of agri-food products in 2020 compared to 2019 practically has not changed - an increase of 0.2%. At the same time, the imports for the same period increased by 13.3%. Exceeding the growth rate of imports over exports led to a significant deterioration in the foreign trade balance of agri-food products - a decrease of 4.4%, which indicates the negative impact of the pandemic and the restrictive quarantine measures introduction on foreign trade in agri-food products. The most unfavorable trends were in foreign trade in meat and dairy products. Scientific novelty. The scientific and methodological approaches to assessing the impact of quarantine restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic spread on foreign trade in Ukraine’s agri-food products have been developed in the article. Practical significance. The results of the impact of quarantine restrictions on the foreign trade in agri-food products in 2020-2021, set out in the article, can be taken into account in developing effective targeted government policy aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of the agricultural sector, ensuring Ukraine's stable position in the world agri-food market. -economic development of the country in a pandemic, ensuring the socio-economic development of the country in a pandemic. Tabl.: 3. Figs.: 4. Refs.: 30.