KIEV, Dec. 7 – The hryvnia exchange rate on the interbank currency market could remain at the present level until late 2009, according to Valeriy Lytvytsky, the head of the group of advisors to the governor of the National Bank of Ukraine.

"I don't see any economic factors, including those linked to work of currency speculators, which could give grounds not to forecast the retaining of the present exchange rate until the end of this year... The official and market exchange rates have almost converged," he told Interfax-Ukraine last week.