UKRAINE RAISES INTEREST RATE TO 82 PERCENT. The Ukrainian National Bank on 6 July announced that it will raise its key interest rate from 51 percent to 82 percent beginning from 7 July, ITAR-TASS reported. The hike is widely seen as a measure to support the Ukrainian currency, the hryvnya, the exchange rate for which has been recently falling owing to growing mistrust among foreign investors of Ukraine's financial markets. JM