Radio România Internațional

Tag: currency

  • June 26, 2024 UPDATE

    June 26, 2024 UPDATE

     

    SUMMIT The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, attends the European Council meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday. Support for the neighbouring Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, as well as the new structure of the European Parliament, are on the meeting’s agenda, according to a press release from the Presidency. EU leaders will also continue discussions on appointments at the top of the EU institutions, following the recent European elections.

     

    CURRENCY Romania does not meet the conditions for switching to the single currency, the European Commission said after assessing judicial compatibility and the fulfillment of the so-called convergence criteria. The European Commission looked at price stability, the soundness of public finances, the currency exchange rate stability and the stability of long-term interest rates, areas in which Romania still has a lot to do. Bulgaria, on the other hand, does meet the criteria, but it is not yet a member of the exchange rate mechanism. One of the requirements for joining the Euro zone is a minimum 2-year participation in the mechanism, without major monetary tensions.

     

     

    CITIZENSHIP A bill modifying the Citizenship Act was endorsed by the Parliament of Romania on Wednesday. A provision allowing foreign citizens who are married and living together with a Romanian national abroad for at least 10 years to be granted Romanian citizenship has been scrapped. The prerequisite for applicants to obtain Romanian citizenship is for them to have legally resided in Romania for at least 8 years or, if they are married to Romanian citizens, for at least 5 years. Refugees may also be granted Romanian citizenship after 3 years, instead of 8 years previously. The document also provides for biometric checks such as fingerprints and face recognition, for those who apply for Romanian citizenship, so as to prevent fraud. Also on Wednesday, Romanian MPs passed legislation binding business operators to card customers who purchase alcohol, energy drinks and tobacco in order to make sure they are over 18. The fines for failure to comply range from EUR 2,000 to 6,000.

     

     

    REHAB Detoxification and rehabilitation centres for drug addicts will be established in each of the 8 development regions in Romania, under a bill passed by the Chamber of Deputies in this respect. Dan Tănasă, a member of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR, in opposition) says drug trafficking is a topic on the agenda of the Supreme Defence Council, which is a clear sign that Romania has been hijacked by drug trafficking networks. Tănasă also said setting up such centres does not tackle the core issue. In response, the Social Democrat Florin Buicu, whose party is the main partner in the ruling coalition, said prevention is necessary with respect to drug consumption, but that the need for addict treatment centres is undeniable. The bill is to be submitted to the president of Romania for promulgation.

     

     

    USR The ex-journalist Elena Lasconi, the mayor of Câmpulung Muscel (southern Romania), was elected president of Save Romania Union (in opposition, affiliated to RENEW in the European Parliament) with 68% of the online votes of party members. Lasconi said the reconstruction of USR would now begin, with a party congress scheduled for this weekend, when the members of the party’s leading structure, the National Bureau, will also be elected. The former USR leader Cătălin Drulă resigned following the local and EP elections of June 9, when the United Right Alliance, comprising USR, the People’s Movement Party and the Force of the Right came below the Social Democrats and the Liberals (in the ruling coalition) and AUR party.

     

     

    NATO The 32 NATO member countries Wednesday confirmed the nomination of the Dutch PM Mark Rutte for secretary general. France Press says the withdrawal of the candidacy of Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis and of the objections raised by Hungary and Slovakia paved the way for Rutte securing the top NATO post. He is to take office on October 1, when the last extension of the current secretary general Jens Stoltenberg’s term in office expires. Appointed in 2014, Stoltenberg saw his term in office extended 4 times in the context of the war in Ukraine. (AMP)

  • Disputes over fuel prices

    Disputes over fuel prices

    Fuel
    prices have risen substantially over the past few months across Europe, and the
    trend is likely to continue.


    Romania
    covers 70% of its oil demand from imports, and supplies are received
    exclusively via the Black Sea, with transport and insurance costs skyrocketing
    because of the war in Ukraine.


    The parties
    in the ruling coalition are looking for solutions to cut fuel prices, but they disagree
    on what the best option would be. Although they agree that price rises have
    reached a critical point, the Liberals and the Social Democrats have different
    views on how to reduce prices, and pass the responsibility between the Liberal
    energy minister and the Social-Democrat finance minister, with the Social
    Democrats favouring a price ceiling and the Liberals-a new fiscal intervention.


    USR
    party in opposition Tuesday tabled a simple motion against the energy minister Virgil
    Popescu, whom they accuse on incompetence. On top of this, carriers demand a
    solution as soon as possible.


    The Smart
    Energy Association, on the other hand, believes a solution would be to reduce
    excises and VAT. According to a report made public by the association, the
    government is the main beneficiary of the rise in fuel prices, having gained an
    additional EUR 600 million this year compared to the corresponding period of
    2021. The organization also argues that a ceiling on retail prices would be
    more harmful to the economy.


    Meanwhile,
    energy experts claim petrol and diesel prices will continue to go up as long as
    the demand remains high, and a governmental intervention might have undesired
    effects. Another reason for the price increase is the depreciation of the
    Romanian currency. Gabriel Avăcăriţei, editor-in-chief of Energynomics, shared
    his views on the topic to Radio Romania:


    Gabriel
    Avăcăriţei: The upward trend is most likely to keep as long as the demand
    remains high. As long as we continue to see lots of vehicles in the street,
    this means people can afford this high fuel price. And there is something else I
    would like to add. Over the past 10 years, Romanians’ average incomes have
    grown by 100%, to roughly EUR 1,000. So when average revenues go up more than
    fuel prices do, then people’s spending power is higher.


    Gabriel
    Avăcăriței also argues that, although various measures have been taken in
    several European countries, their impact on consumer prices has not been
    substantial.


    Nonetheless,
    tentative protests are beginning to be reported in the country with respect to the
    recent price rises. (AMP)

  • 23 December 2019, UPDATE

    23 December 2019, UPDATE

    Commemoration. Religious and military ceremonies
    commemorating the 40 gendarmes killed on December 23rd, 1989, have
    been held at the Otopeni Airport, near Bucharest. Just one day after dictator
    Ceausescu lost power, they were killed by the forces that were protecting the
    airport, who thought the gendarmes were terrorists. They had in fact been sent
    there to enforce defence around the airport.




    Government. The Romanian government has assumed responsibility in Parliament for the
    state budget bill, a first in Romanian politics. The Orban government also
    assumed responsibility for the social security bill and another bill amending
    an emergency order that introduced additional fees on energy and
    telecommunications companies and banks. In his Parliament address, the Liberal
    prime minister Ludovic Orban said passing legislation by assuming
    responsibility, which involves a vote of confidence, is a democratic move and
    is stipulated in the Romanian Constitution. He also said that it was the only
    solution to pass the budget bill for 2020 by the end of this year. He explained
    that he agreed to a number of amendments before presenting the bill in
    Parliament. He said he gave up a cap on bonuses for special working conditions
    and a ban on receiving both a state pension and a salary at the same time in
    the public sector. Healthcare and education budgets are to grow next year, and the
    2% defence spending will be maintained. The Social Democrats have criticised
    the government’s move to pass legislation by assuming responsibility in
    Parliament. According to a statement by the Constitutional Court made public on
    Monday, the Court was asked to look into the possibility of a legal conflict
    between the government and Parliament by the speakers of the Senate and the
    Chamber of Deputies. The Court has set the date of January 10th for
    the two parties to state their case in writing.




    Currency. Most CFA analysts in Romania expect a depreciation of the Romanian
    currency in the coming 12 months, down to the value of 4.8633 lei per one euro,
    and an average inflation rate of 3.52%, as indicated by November’s
    Macroeconomic Confidence Indicator, published on Monday. CFA Romania is one of
    the most important local professional organisations bringing together
    investment professionals from banking, asset management, insurance, private
    equity, pension funds and other areas and is a member of the CFA Institute
    Global Network of Societies. It has some 240 members in Romania. The indicator
    was launched in Romania in May 2011.




    Army. The Romanian defence minister
    Nicolae Ciuca and the chief of the defence staff, lieutenant general Daniel
    Petrescu on Monday received the chief of the defence staff in the Canadian
    army, general Jonathan H. Vance, who is on a visit to Romania. The meeting took
    place at the Mihail Kogalniceanu air base in south-western Romania. According
    to a statement by the defence ministry in Bucharest, the three officials
    discussed the stage of cooperation between the Romanian and Canadian armies
    within NATO, the UN and the OSCE, as well as the security situation in the
    greater Black Sea area. The Romanian officials thanked the Canadian general for
    the contribution to supporting ongoing regional initiatives and the support
    given to the Romanian detachment carrying out medical evacuation operations in
    Mali.




    Drugs. The Romanian police and
    prosecutors have confiscated more than 33 kg of heroin worth more than 1
    million euros on the black market, following searches at the homes of a number
    of persons suspected of drug trafficking. According to an official statement, a
    crime group made up of four suspects was carrying out transactions involving
    significant amounts of drugs. The members of the group were allegedly planning
    to sell a large quantity of heroin in Romania and other EU member states, which
    they had acquired from a Turkish citizen. Two of the four suspects are in
    custody, while the other two are in temporary house arrest.







  • Romania and the Euro

    Romania and the Euro

    Romanias switching to the Euro is a national project whose success requires the support of the entire society, PM Viorica Dancila said upon the presentation of the substantiation report for the National Plan to Adopt the Single Currency. Just like the accession to the European Union and NATO, the countrys accession to the Euro zone is a nation-wide priority, the head of the Romanian Government believes. According to her, this will benefit the Romanian society, but the success of this endeavour requires the support of the academia, civil society, political parties, social partners and the key public authorities.



    Proper preparation for the first stage of this process, namely the adoption of the European exchange rate mechanism, as well as governmental measures to enhance competitiveness and ensure sustainable economic growth, are of vital importance in this respect.



    Viorica Dancila: “I firmly believe that, through measures aimed at stimulating the economy and supporting competitive sectors, and through open and constant dialogue with social partners, we can pave the way for Romania to be able to meet the key requirements for adopting the euro by 2024.



    The President of the Romanian Academy, Aurel Pop, emphasised that Romanias EU membership has been essential and the countrys embracing the Unions values has been redemptive for the Romanian society.



    In turn, the Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isarescu, supports a cautious approach, because in his opinion switching to the Euro, in and by itself, does not solve the problems of an economy, but, on the contrary, it may even deepen them. The central bank official believes that Romania should look at how the other countries in Central and Eastern Europe have handled this change. In his opinion, the relevant example for Romania is the way Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary have tackled this process. Adopting the Euro remains a commitment that the country stands by.



    Mugur Isarescu: “The switch to the Euro is a matter of when, and not a matter of if. Romanias commitment to joining the Euro zone is unquestionable, and is an obligation that the country has taken under the EU Accession Treaty. But beyond the formal and judicial obligation, the commitment to adopting the single currency also reflects Romanias strong affiliation to the European project. In other words, fully embracing Romanias European future includes the accession to the Euro zone.



    Mugur Isarescu also mentioned that this is not a strictly technical matter, a mere replacement of a set of notes and coins with another, but a highly complex process, whose proper unfolding and successful completion require very careful management and close cooperation between all the institutions involved.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Romania and the Euro

    Romania and the Euro

    Romanias switching to the Euro is a national project whose success requires the support of the entire society, PM Viorica Dancila said upon the presentation of the substantiation report for the National Plan to Adopt the Single Currency. Just like the accession to the European Union and NATO, the countrys accession to the Euro zone is a nation-wide priority, the head of the Romanian Government believes. According to her, this will benefit the Romanian society, but the success of this endeavour requires the support of the academia, civil society, political parties, social partners and the key public authorities.



    Proper preparation for the first stage of this process, namely the adoption of the European exchange rate mechanism, as well as governmental measures to enhance competitiveness and ensure sustainable economic growth, are of vital importance in this respect.



    Viorica Dancila: “I firmly believe that, through measures aimed at stimulating the economy and supporting competitive sectors, and through open and constant dialogue with social partners, we can pave the way for Romania to be able to meet the key requirements for adopting the euro by 2024.



    The President of the Romanian Academy, Aurel Pop, emphasised that Romanias EU membership has been essential and the countrys embracing the Unions values has been redemptive for the Romanian society.



    In turn, the Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isarescu, supports a cautious approach, because in his opinion switching to the Euro, in and by itself, does not solve the problems of an economy, but, on the contrary, it may even deepen them. The central bank official believes that Romania should look at how the other countries in Central and Eastern Europe have handled this change. In his opinion, the relevant example for Romania is the way Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary have tackled this process. Adopting the Euro remains a commitment that the country stands by.



    Mugur Isarescu: “The switch to the Euro is a matter of when, and not a matter of if. Romanias commitment to joining the Euro zone is unquestionable, and is an obligation that the country has taken under the EU Accession Treaty. But beyond the formal and judicial obligation, the commitment to adopting the single currency also reflects Romanias strong affiliation to the European project. In other words, fully embracing Romanias European future includes the accession to the Euro zone.



    Mugur Isarescu also mentioned that this is not a strictly technical matter, a mere replacement of a set of notes and coins with another, but a highly complex process, whose proper unfolding and successful completion require very careful management and close cooperation between all the institutions involved.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Romania and the Euro

    Romania and the Euro

    Romanias switching to the Euro is a national project whose success requires the support of the entire society, PM Viorica Dancila said upon the presentation of the substantiation report for the National Plan to Adopt the Single Currency. Just like the accession to the European Union and NATO, the countrys accession to the Euro zone is a nation-wide priority, the head of the Romanian Government believes. According to her, this will benefit the Romanian society, but the success of this endeavour requires the support of the academia, civil society, political parties, social partners and the key public authorities.



    Proper preparation for the first stage of this process, namely the adoption of the European exchange rate mechanism, as well as governmental measures to enhance competitiveness and ensure sustainable economic growth, are of vital importance in this respect.



    Viorica Dancila: “I firmly believe that, through measures aimed at stimulating the economy and supporting competitive sectors, and through open and constant dialogue with social partners, we can pave the way for Romania to be able to meet the key requirements for adopting the euro by 2024.



    The President of the Romanian Academy, Aurel Pop, emphasised that Romanias EU membership has been essential and the countrys embracing the Unions values has been redemptive for the Romanian society.



    In turn, the Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isarescu, supports a cautious approach, because in his opinion switching to the Euro, in and by itself, does not solve the problems of an economy, but, on the contrary, it may even deepen them. The central bank official believes that Romania should look at how the other countries in Central and Eastern Europe have handled this change. In his opinion, the relevant example for Romania is the way Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary have tackled this process. Adopting the Euro remains a commitment that the country stands by.



    Mugur Isarescu: “The switch to the Euro is a matter of when, and not a matter of if. Romanias commitment to joining the Euro zone is unquestionable, and is an obligation that the country has taken under the EU Accession Treaty. But beyond the formal and judicial obligation, the commitment to adopting the single currency also reflects Romanias strong affiliation to the European project. In other words, fully embracing Romanias European future includes the accession to the Euro zone.



    Mugur Isarescu also mentioned that this is not a strictly technical matter, a mere replacement of a set of notes and coins with another, but a highly complex process, whose proper unfolding and successful completion require very careful management and close cooperation between all the institutions involved.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • January 29, 2019 UPDATE

    January 29, 2019 UPDATE

    DIPLOMACY – President Klaus Iohannis has said, at a meeting with the heads of diplomatic missions in Bucharest, that he will do everything in his power to ensure that the values of the rule of law, of liberal democracy and of an independent and efficient judiciary are not affected. The president vowed that, regardless of the very dynamic domestic political situation, all decision makers will join efforts to ensure the proper fulfilment of Romania’s role as holder of the presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019. He reiterated that Schengen accession remains a priority for Romania. Also, according to the head of state, Bucharest’s candidacy for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council is quite strong. As for strengthening the strategic partnership with the US, Klaus Iohannis said this remains a foreign policy priority for Romania.



    EUROPEAN AFFAIRS — The Romanian Foreign Minister, Teodor Meleşcanu, said in an interview with the France Press News Agency made public on Tuesday that there shouldn’t be any relation between European funds and the rule of law. Whereas Brussels and Washington have criticized the legislative overhaul in the Romanian justice system over the past two years, which- in their opinion — poses a threat on democratic institutions, Teodor Meleşcanu has referred to a reform carried out transparently. The Romanian Foreign Minister also gave assurances that Romania is a stable and solid democracy. On January 16, the European Parliament debated and voted on rules to reduce pre-financing or suspend EU budget payments to member states which interfere with courts or which do not tackle fraud and corruption. This proposal, launched by the European Commission will be a point on the agenda of negotiations with the Council of the European Union. Romania is currently holding the rotating presidency of this Council.



    BREXIT — Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă and the British ambassador to Bucharest, Andrew Noble, held talks in Bucharest on Tuesday on Great Britain’s leaving the EU, against the backdrop of Romania’s holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Viorica Dăncilă and Andrew Noble underlined the very good stage of bilateral relations, the common role in securing and defending Europe, as well as the tighter economic and social ties between the two countries. The Romanian Prime Minister reiterated that Romania pays special heed to the need to protect the rights of the Romanian citizens living in the UK, and, in her turn, she gave assurances that Bucharest will make everything necessary at domestic level for the protection of the rights of British citizens in Romania.



    CORRUPTION -Transparency International Tuesday presented its annual Corruption Perceptions Index, which ranks 180 countries by their public sector corruption levels as decided by consulting experts and business communities. According to the 2018 report, Romania ranks 61st in the world, with 47 points, down 2 places since 2017. Transparency International’s index uses a 0 to 100 scale, with 0 standing for extremely high corruption and 100 for no corruption at all. Out of the 28 EU member states, Romania is 24th. The top positions in the global ranking are held by Denmark, New Zealand, Finland, Singapore, Sweden and Switzerland.



    FINANCIAL — The Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isărescu, on Tuesday declined the invitation for hearings in the Economic Committee of the Romanian Senate on the way in which the “Romanian Interbank Offer Rate” ROBOR is set and on the severe depreciation of the Romanian national currency, the leu, in recent times. The invitation to answer some questions in Parliament has been extended to Mugur Isărescu against the backdrop of accusations levelled very more and more often by the ruling parties as well as by some experts and journalists, according to whom the ROBOR index is allegedly set following an illegal understanding between the commercial banks, which the National Bank knows of, without intervening on the market. The central bank is also accused of doing nothing to defend the national currency. The Spokesperson for the National Bank of Romania, Dan Suciu, has said it is important that talks in the Economic Committee of the Senate do not to start from ungrounded, fake news.



    EURO 2020 — The City Hall of Bucharest on Tuesday marked the countdown to EURO 2020 which kicks off in 500 days time, by mounting an exhibition with the T-shirts worn by prominent Romanian footballers such as Gheorghe Popescu, Gheorghe Hagi, Ioan Andone, Dudu Georgescu, Helmuth Dukadam, Miodrag Belodedici and Bogdan Stelea. Romania has been chosen to organise four matches on the National Arena in Bucharest. The capital city will host three Group C matches and a match in the eighth finals. Consequently, the National Arena will venue these matches on June 14, 18, 22 and 29, 2020. (Translated by AM Popescu and D. Vijeu)

  • Romanian currency hits all-time low

    Romanian currency hits all-time low

    The Romanian currency, the leu, continues to decline against the Euro. After several consecutive increases, the single currency soared to an all-time record, the official, National Bank exchange rate for the first time exceeding the 4.7 leu ceiling.



    According to analysts, it is a temporary increase. On Monday, the exchange rate was 4.7081 leu for the Euro, down 0.23% since Friday. The national currency also lost ground to the US dollar and to the Swiss franc. Central bank officials say these are inconsequential fluctuations and should not be seen as signs of currency market instability.



    The National Banks strategy adviser, Adrian Vasilescu, noted that the impact is psychological, and that the Romanian currency only depreciated by 1 ban, the 100th subdivision of the leu, against the Euro. He also emphasised that the National Bank would only consider an intervention in case the depreciation exceeds 4-5%. Such fluctuations from one day to the next cannot reflect developments in the national economy, but rather the supply-to-demand ratio and the evolution of imports, Adrian Vasilescu explained:



    Adrian Vasilescu: “Importers brought Christmas-related commodities in Romanian stores, shops were full, people bought foreign products extensively, and now those importers exchange their Romanian-currency revenues to Euros, to pay their invoices.



    But, Adrian Vasilescu warned, apart from long-term, economy-related factors that lead to changes in the exchange rate, the currency market is also influenced by political statements. He argued however that investors do not make their decisions based on emotions, and they will very likely not see Romania as a high-risk country. Financial analysts also agree that the current fluctuations in the currency market are small and that there are no reasons to worry.



    Corneliu Cojocaru: “The Euro rises against the leu in very small steps. This is not an alarming occurrence, and it may get reversed at any moment. The causes are well known, we have a high demand for Euros in the market and a small supply. The high demand is understandable, considering that we import more than we export so Romania has a trade balance deficit. In other words, we pay more than we cash in, so naturally the Euro is in high demand.



    Economists believe an exchange rate that more properly reflects the actual Romanian economy is 4.75 leu for the Euro, and that the national currency may well continue to drop in the forthcoming period. ROBOR, the main index used in setting the floating interest rates for loans in the national currency, has also gone up again and is getting close to 3%.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • The Leu hits new historic low

    The Leu hits new historic low

    Despite the significant economic growth, the currency of Romania, the Leu, has been constantly losing ground to the European single currency. As of last week, the Leu has been reporting negative historic levels with every day that goes by. The National Bank of Romania set the exchange rate at 4.60 Lei for one euro, the lowest in the last five years and three months. On August 3, 2012 the central bank had set the Euro-Leu exchange rate at 4.648 Lei. What is behind this sharp depreciation of the Leu? National Bank spokesman Dan Suciu explains:



    Dan Suciu: “The Leu ultimately reflects the foundations of the economy, the very elements underlying any economy, and we have hit the critical mass that led to a slight change of perception on the economy and implicitly on the Leu. One of the figures that confirm this trend is the trade deficit, the current account deficit, or simply put the balance between the countrys imports and exports.



    Adrian Vasilescu, a strategy advisor with the National Bank, also tried to explain what exactly has been influencing the currency market. “Imports have gone up faster than exports, the gap is around €8 billion now and is estimated to grow to €12 billion by the end of the year, Adrian Vasilescu pointed out. “Who will make up for this difference? Shouldnt it be the exchange rate? This is the kind of pressure that the current account deficit exerts on the currency market and that the National Bank has been signaling repeatedly, the National Bank strategy advisor has argued. Will this depreciation trend continue? National Bank spokesman Dan Suciu is back at the microphone with more details:



    Dan Suciu: “We dont know that. What we do know is that the Leu started depreciating compared to other currencies in the region a long time ago, and its advisable we take this difference into account when discussing regional tendencies. So the Leu has been going down for a while now, and were not sure if this trend will continue. We are witnessing a shift in the Leu-Euro exchange rate. For a long time the Leu fluctuated around the 4.4-4.5 mark. Right now we can see a clear shift towards a different level. Whether it will be 4.6 or higher, it remains to be seen.



    The rise of the Leu-Euro exchange rate will also result in a spike of interest rates and prices. The National Bank of Romania estimates an inflation rate of 2.7% for the end of the year, higher than the initial forecast.


    (translated by: Vlad Palcu)

  • July 25, 2017

    July 25, 2017

    Statement — The impact of Romania’s purchasing Patriot missiles will be strong, contributing indirectly to the defense of the neighbouring states and of NATO, the US Ambassador to Romania, Hans Klemm, has said in an interview with the public television. According to Ambassador Klemm, there is no reason that this move should cause tensions with Russia, as the purpose is strictly defensive. Klemm has also said that the purchase of Patriot missile is part of Bucharest’s commitment to earmark 2% of the GDP for defesnse, a commitment that the US firmly supports. We remind you that a Pentagon agency, quoted by Reuters, announced that the US Department of State approved two weeks ago a possible sale of Patriot missiles to Romania, worth 3.9 billion dollars.




    Poll – 1.1 million Romanians plan to leave the country in the following five years and 2 millions want to move to one of Romania’s big cities, according to an opinion poll mentioned in a report dubbed ”Magnet Cities” conducted by the World Bank. The report also says that Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Timisoara and Brasov are the most attractive cities for most people who want to move. Respondents in the urban area have said they want to move abroad, while people from rural areas want to move to cities in Romania. Also, most men want to go live abroad, while most women prefer to move somewhere in a Romanian city.




    Ukraine — Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine have agreed on some urgent measures aimed at speeding up the process of finding a solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, Berlin has announced, after leaders of the four countries discussed the issue over the phone. The talks were held a day after the US special envoy to the Ukraine peace talks, Kurt Volker, had said that Russian aggression is to blame for violence in eastern Ukraine, where people are dying in what should be seen as a “hot war” rather than a “frozen conflict”. Russia has been constantly denying all accusations. The conflict in Ukraine has made over 10 thousand victims in three years.




    Depreciation — Romania’s domestic currency, the leu, will depreciate in the following 12 months to an average value of 4.6 lei/euro, while the inflation rate will stand at 2%, according to a release of the Chartered Financial Analysts (CFA). In the month of June, CFA Romania’s macroeconomic confidence index went down as compared to the previous month, to 60 points. The CFA Macroeconomic Confidence Index was first released by CFA Society Romania in May 2011 and is an indicator that aims at quantifying anticipations of the financial analysts on economic activity in Romania. The Index can have values between 0, which means no confidence, and 100 points, ​which means complete confidence in the Romanian economy.




    Football – This week, Romanian football teams are playing in European competitions. In the third preliminary round of the Champions League, Romania’s vice champion FCSB is taking on the Czech team Viktoria Plzen this evening in Bucharest, while on Wednesday Romania’s champion Viitorul Constanta is to play against Cyprus champions Apoel Nicosia at home, in Ovidiu. In the Europa League preliminaries, on Thursday in Bucharest Dinamo plays against Athletic Bilbao, while in Drobeta Turnu Severin CSU Craiova takes on the Italian side AC Milan.


  • June 21, 2017 UPDATE

    June 21, 2017 UPDATE

    NO CONFIDENCE MOTION – The Romanian Parliament on Wednesday adopted the no confidence motion tabled by the ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania against its own government, led by PM Sorin Grindeanu. 241 MPs endorsed the motion, exceeding the minimum number of required votes, that is 233. The other parliamentary parties, the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians and the Peoples Movement Party refrained from voting, saying the issue was an internal problem of the coalition. The motion was tabled after the prime minister refused to step down and the coalition parties withdrew their political support. Grindeanu dismissed as ungrounded the conclusions of a report drafted by PSD and assessing the activity of the cabinet six months after it took office, a report which signalled delays in implementing the governing program. President Klaus Iohannis will hold talks with the parliamentary parties on Monday on the formation of a new government, his spokesperson has announced.



    THE NATIONAL CURRENCY– The Romanian national currency, the leu, on Wednesday plunged to a new record low, against the backdrop of the current political crisis. The National Bank of Romania announced one Euro stands at 4.59 lei, plunging to a record low since August 2012, when the leu sold for 4.64 lei, against the backdrop of another political crisis, generated by the suspension of the then president, Traian Basescu.

    ECONOMIC
    POLICY-     The IMF Resident Representative for Romania and Bulgaria,
    Alejandro Hajdenberg recommends to the Romanian authorities to show fiscal
    prudence after having recently operated many tax cuts and having increased
    salaries and pensions. He says a cautious salary policy is very important to
    protect the competitiveness of the Romanian private sector on foreign markets.
    The fight against corruption should also be continued, Hajdenberg added.



    FARMING – Business in the farming sector has doubled in the last seven years, to reach some 3,5 billion euros in 2015, reads a recent KeysFin survey. Over 7,000 enterprises with more than 40,000 employees are currently operating in the field, a number which went up by nearly 30% as compared to 2009. The KeysFin analysis also shows that, according to the latest data provided by the European Commission at the end of May, Romania has become the main cereal exporter at EU level. On the other hand, National Bank Deputy Governor Liviu Voinea said Romania has been making constant progress in bridging the development gaps separating it from other developed states.



    SUMMER EUROPEAN COUNCIL – President Klaus Iohannis will attend the proceedings of the Summer European Council in Brussels, on Thursday and Friday. On the sidelines of the summit, Iohannis will have bilateral talks with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron. The Romanian President flies to Brussels directly from Germany, where he paid a visit during which he met on Monday with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the federal chancellor, Angela Merkel. We recall that in early June, the Romanian presidents foreign policy agenda included a 5-day working visit to the US, during which he had a meeting with US President, Donald Trump, at the White House.



    2017 SELECTUSA INVESTMENT SUMMIT- 23 Romanian delegates representing 17 companies from the mining, ICT, engineering and distilling industries attended the SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, over June 18 and 20. The Summit is the highest profile event to connect global companies and U.S. economic development organizations to facilitate business investment in the United States. This year’s Romanian delegation was the largest in history to the SelectUSA Summit, more specifically a 600% increase over last year’s. Delegates have each had numerous matchmaking meetings with US Companies and Economic Development Organizations. “We are thrilled to welcome 23 Investors to the Summit and to the United States, said U.S. Ambassador to Romania Hans Klemm, who underlined that “the Summit brings business opportunities and resources from across the United States together in a single place, enabling participants to complete weeks of work in fewer than three days. Attending the event was also the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, who said “this is an exciting time for global companies to explore the U.S. market and find partners that can help them create a footprint, expand operations, and achieve growth. There is no better place to make those connections than this Summit.



    CONSTITUTIONAL COURT – The Constitutional Court of Romania ruled that any persons with an expired prison sentence, who have been pardoned or rehabilitated or whove been sentenced for something that is no longer considered a crime, can be members of the Government. Court judges claim the law is inconsistent in this respect, as someone who is criminally prosecuted cannot be part of the Government, although he can be president or a member of Parliament. The Court thus responded to a notification filed by the Ombudsmans Office earlier this year. The legislation in force did not allow Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea to be Prime Minister, after his party won the December 2016 legislative elections. Dragnea got a suspended sentence for election fraud attempt in the 2012 referendum to impeach the then president, Traian Basescu.



    FINANCING – Over 400 million euros will be made available for funding Romanian SMEs after the European Investment Bank signed funding protocols with six local banks. Based on these agreements, banks can give loans both for starting SMEs as well as for developing those already on the market. The collaboration agreement between the EIB, the European Commission and the Government of Romania was signed in October last year.



    GAC – State Secretary with the Romanian Foreign Ministry Bogdan Manoiu on Tuesday attended the General Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg, focusing on preparing the European Council meeting of June 22-23. The Romanian official said security and defence measures to be adopted must be balanced, lead to more cohesion between Member States and ensure added value for the EUs security contribution and its complementarity with NATO measures in this field. At the same time, Secretary Manoiu reiterated Romanias interest to implement all measures aimed at strengthening the EUs external borders. Referring to migration, the Romanian official underscored the need to consolidate progress reported in cooperation with countries of origin and transit countries based on the Partnership Framework adopted in 2016. Bogdan Manoiu also expressed Romanias readiness to continue dialogue in order to identify a consensual solution in terms of reforming the Common European Asylum System.



    ATTACK –Belgian prosecutors say the suicide bomber shot dead by the police on Tuesday evening in Central Station in Brussels was trying to detonate a gas and nail bomb he was carrying in a suitcase. The bomber was a Moroccan citizen, aged 36, whose home has been searched by the Belgian security forces. They found items showing the bomber might have been an ISIS supporter. In March 2016 Brussels was hit by a wave of suicide bomb attacks at the airport and the subway system, which killed 32 people. The attacks were claimed by the Islamic State terrorist organisation.



    US-UKRAINE RELATIONS – US President Donald trump on Tuesday met in Washington with his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, on the very day the White House announced harsher sanctions against Moscow, whom they accuse of supporting pro-Russian rebel separatists in Eastern Ukraine. Russian immediately criticized the call and promised to retaliate. Broke out in 2014, the conflict in eastern Ukraine has so far killed over ten thousand people. The US and its European allies have called on Russia to observe the Minsk ceasefire agreements of 2015. The White House said that sanctions regarding the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has illegally occupied wouldnt be lifted unless Moscow withdraws its troops from the region.

  • November 18, 2016 UPDATE

    November 18, 2016 UPDATE

    CURRENCY – The Romanian currency, the leu, further depreciated on Friday against the US dollar, to a new all-time low. The National Bank of Romania announced an exchange rate of 4.25 leu for the dollar. Economic analysts believe the evolution of the American currency will entail an increase in the prices of Romanian imports from outside the EU, including fuels.



    AWARD – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, received in Kerkrade, the Netherlands on Friday the Martin Buber medal granted by the Euriade foundation, an NGO promoting the education of youth in the spirit of European values. The award is handed every year to personalities whose public and private work contributes to the development of friendly communities relying on humanist values, through genuine dialogue, openness, responsibility and respect for the others. Prior to the ceremony in Kerkrade, the head of state had meetings with over 100 young people from various countries, taking part in the International Festival of Dialogue, currently under way in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, a region on the borders of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. The award has been granted every year since 2002. Queen Silvia of Sweden, Mikhail Gorbachev, Gary Kasparov and Helmut Schmidt are some of the personalities who have received this award over the years.



    MOLDOVA – The Central Electoral Committee in Chisinau Friday night announced the official results of the presidential election in the Republic of Moldova, won by the pro-Russian Socialist Igor Dodon with 52% of the votes. The Committee dismissed the over 170 objections submitted by Dodons challenger, the pro-European reformer Maia Sandu, who claimed there had been many irregularities and requested that the election be invalidated. The Committee also rejected the more than 3,000 complaints filed by Moldovan citizens living abroad, who claimed their constitutional right to vote had been violated. According to the head of the Central Electoral Committee, Alina Rusu, quoted by Radio Romania correspondents, the respective irregularities were minor and could not have influenced the outcome of the election. Also on Friday, Dodon resigned as president of the Socialist Party, whose leadership will be taken over by the chief of the Socialist group in Parliament, Zinaida Greceanîi, a former PM during the communist rule.



    BOOK FAIR – Hundreds of visitors of the Gaudeamus International Book Fair organised by Radio Romania and under way in Bucharest attended on Friday book launches, cultural events, debates, recitals, workshops and meetings with authors. The list of books launched on Friday includes “The Colour of Paradise by the contemporary Chinese poet Jidi Majia and “The Wedding by the Romanian writer and journalist of Polish descent Gabriel Klimowicz. Radio Romanias stand had a programme dedicated to children. The fair, which comes to an end on Sunday, brings together hundreds of publishers and more than 850 events. This years guest of honour is China. Gaudeamus is organised by Radio Romania, the only public radio station in the world to initiate and develop a programme of such magnitude to support print culture.



    HEALTH – Romania ranks second in the EU, after Greece, in terms of antibiotic use per capita. In average, 600,000 Romanians receive antibiotic prescriptions every day, according to the latest report of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. This reflects in the high level of antibiotic-resistant bacteria occurrence, warns the president of the Romanian Microbiology Association, doctor Alexandru Rafila. The absence of measures to combat antibiotic resistance might cause up to 10 million annual deaths by infection with multi-resistant germs by 2050, reads a forecast by the World Health Organisation.



    US PRESIDENT – EU leaders and the US President Barak Obama Friday pleaded for preserving trans-Atlantic cooperation within NATO. According to a news release issued by the White House, Obama and his host, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, alongside the President of France François Hollande and the Prime Ministers of UK Theresa May, of Spain Mariano Rajoy, and of Italy Matteo Renzi, also agreed to maintain sanctions against Russia. Germany is the second country, after Greece, that Obama visited as part of his last trip to Europe as President of the USA, amid concerns that his successor, the right-wing populist Donald Trump, would be a threat to democracy. After Germany, Obama is traveling to Peru, to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. Trump is to take office on January 20.



    RUGBY – Romanias national rugby team is playing a friendly game in Bucharest on Saturday night against Canada. The two teams also played last year, at the World Cup in England, where the Romanians managed the most spectacular reversal of fortune in the history of the competition, winning 17-15, after 0-15 on 52 minutes. This is the second test match played this month by the Romanian rugby team, which last week defeated the US, at home, 23-10. The series of test matches in Bucharest concludes on November 26, when Romania plays Uruguay.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)