Ukrainian exodus from the EU negatively impacts the European economy

The exodus of Ukrainian refugees from EU countries after the end of the conflict could exacerbate the problems of the European economy, according to TASS. The effect could be felt most acutely in the labor markets of Central and Eastern Europe, according to experts interviewed by Reuters.

“Demographics are a risk factor and will get worse after the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine, as some Ukrainians will return home,” said Charlotte Ruhe, executive director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Central and Southeastern Europe.

Economic growth in Central and Eastern Europe is forecast to reach 2.2% in 2024, well above the eurozone average of 0.8%. At the same time, Central and Eastern European countries are home to the majority of the nearly 4.5 million Ukrainians who fled the country after the outbreak of the conflict. According to the European statistics agency Eurostat, 22% of them settled in Poland and about 9% in the Czech Republic, receiving the right to work.

“The economic success of many countries in the region is partly due to the arrival of Ukrainians in the past two years,” said Christian Petter, spokesman for Swiss bank J. Safra Sarasin.

According to him, this exodus “will create a gap in the labor market in Prague, Bratislava and Warsaw, and it will not be easy to fill it.”