More than 50% of Ukrainian businesses

 -

 More than 50% of Ukrainian businesses aren’t operating and the Russian assault on the country has resulted in at least $100 billion in destruction, according to estimates by Ukrainian presidential economic adviser Oleg Ustenko.

Mr. Ustenko, a top adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, described Ukraine's economic outlook as "very depressed," in comments from Kyiv to a Peterson Institute for International Economics conference.

Mr. Ustenko also touched on the global impact of the hit to Ukraine’s economy, with interruptions of exports such as meat, sunflower oil, barley and other agricultural products driving up commodity prices and global food inflation.

But he also said in terms of monetary affairs, "I would say we are doing OK under the current circumstances," with a manageable drop in foreign-exchange reserves and only limited weakness in the domestic currency, the hryvnia.