: Most Ukrainian businesses are fully operational, says Kyiv-based American Chamber of Commerce

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More than 480 days after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, 84% of the companies surveyed by the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine are fully operational.

The survey, which was conducted jointly with member company Ernst & Young Ukraine, found that 49% of respondents reported damage to factories, facilities, storehouses or offices as a result of Russia’s invasion. The research also found that 19% of members reported having some of their assets in areas under Russian occupation.

Some 56% of respondents said that all of their companies’ employees are safe. However, 32% of companies surveyed said employees had been killed and 27% said employees had been injured in the war.

Related: ‘Ukraine is open for business’: Western companies urged to be part of country’s recovery

Some 102 representatives of members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine participated in the survey. The 600-plus members of the chamber include Boeing Co. 
BA,
-3.46%
,
Cisco Systems Inc. 
CSCO,
-1.00%
,
 Citigroup Inc. 
C,
-1.20%
,
 Coca-Cola Co. 
KO,
-0.66%
,
 Delta Air Lines Inc. 
DAL,
-0.72%
,
 Alphabet Inc.’s 
GOOGL,
-0.35%

GOOG,
-0.17%

Google, International Business Machines Corp.
IBM,
-1.11%
,
 Lockheed Martin Corp.
LMT,
-0.17%
,
 McDonald’s Corp.
MCD,
-0.22%
,
Microsoft Corp. 
MSFT,
-1.25%
,
 Oracle Corp. 
ORCL,
-2.73%
,
 PepsiCo Inc. 
PEP,
-0.39%

and Pfizer Inc. 
PFE,
-1.80%
.

The research also found that only 15% of respondents are currently considering requesting compensation from Russia for direct physical damage or lost profits as a result of the war, while 53% do not plan to request compensation and 32% have not decided yet. 

“The majority of businesses in Ukraine don’t plan to make claims for war damages until proper compensation mechanisms are in place,” said Andy Hunder, president of the chamber. “It is important to have these clear mechanisms developed and eventually implemented.”

Related: Ukraine will still defeat Russia, even with a winter energy shortage, say members of Kyiv-based American Chamber of Commerce

In March, the government of Ukraine, the World Bank Group, the European Commission and the United Nations reported that the estimated cost of reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine has grown to $411 billion. Ukraine’s reconstruction and recovery cost is 2.6 times the country’s estimated 2022 gross domestic product, according to those organizations.