Radio România Internațional

Tag: money

  • February 9, 2025

    February 9, 2025

    TALKS Romania’s Senate will next week be hosting talks with representatives of real estate agencies, notary public, and the National Agency for Cadastre. The MPs want to include in the legislation regulations for the better protection of those who want to buy houses from real estate developers. Three draft laws have already been submitted to Parliament in this respect. The move comes after hundreds of people affected by the Nordis fraudulent scheme have called for amendments to the legislation. The former PSD MP, Laura Vicol, her husband Vladimir Ciorba who is also the main shareholder in the Nordis Group, and other three persons have been placed in preventive detention in connection with the aforementioned file. The investigation is focusing on natural persons and companies accused of having raked in more than 195 million Euros from customers without giving them the apartments they paid for.

     

    VOTE Over 2 thousand Romanian eligible voters residing abroad have so far registered on the website of the Permanent Election Authority to cast their ballot by mail in the presidential election due in May this year. The registration deadline is March 20th and, according to official figures, most registrations came from Germany, Britain, Switzerland, France and Spain. Romania will be hosting presidential election on May 4 and 18. We recall the first presidential round was invalidated by the Constitutional Court in December last year due to interferences in the election process.

     

    CUP Romania’s national fifteen has qualified for World Cup 2027 after a 31-14 win on Saturday against the Belgian side in Rugby Europe Championship. Romania has thus ensured its 10th participation in the World Cup. Only in 2019, Romania was not allowed to attend the competition because it used an ineligible player in the qualifiers. In its debut match in Rugby Europe Championship 2025, Romania secured a 48-10 home win against Germany. Our players will be having their last match at home against Portugal on February 15. Romania ranks first in the standings with nine points followed by Portugal, Germany and Belgium. The first two sides are qualified for World Cup 2027.

     

    SPORTS CS Gloria 2018 Bistrita Nasaud, a women’s handball side from northern Romania, was outperformed by Slovenian side Krim Ljubljana 28-25 on Saturday in an away match counting towards group A of the Champions League. After that game, Gloria has few chances to qualify for the play-offs. In the same group today, CSM Bucharest takes on RK Podravka of Croatia. In the competition’s group B, Rapid Bucharest takes on Ludwigsburg of Germany. In tennis competitions, the Romanian-Italian pair Jaqueline Cristian/Angelica Moratelli has qualified for the doubles finals of the tennis tournament Transylvania Open (WTA 250), a competition hosted by Cluj-Napoca, in north-western Romania, with more than 275 thousand dollars in prize money. The two have clinched a 6-3, 6-2 win against Katarzyna Piter of Poland and Aleksandra Sasnovici of Belarus. In the finals today Cristian and Moratelli will be up against Magali Kempen of Belgium and Ana Siskova of the Czech Republic.

    (bill)

  • Constant support for the Republic of Moldova

    Constant support for the Republic of Moldova

    Top-ranking Romanian officials visited Chișinău this week to reiterate once again that Bucharest fully supports the European accession process of the neighboring Republic of Moldova. Recently installed at the head of the new coalition government made up of the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party (PSD-PNL), the Social-Democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu, accompanied by the former Liberal prime minister, currently the speaker of the Senate, Nicolae Ciucă, made their first joint external visit to Chișinău, where they had talks with the president of the Republic, Maia Sandu, with the Prime Minister Dorin Recean and the President of Parliament, Igor Grosu.



    The Government of Romania will remain the guarantor of the security and stability of the Republic of Moldova and will continue to support with all its strength the countrys EU accession process said Marcel Ciolacu. He particularly appreciated the progress that Chișinău has registered in applying the reforms in the field of justice and in fighting corruption. And, equally, he spoke about the continuation of bilateral economic cooperation.



    Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu: We are obliged to put a special emphasis on the economic area together. Trade relations between Romania and the Republic of Moldova, last year, increased by 50%, standing at almost 3.6 billion dollars and I think this is the right way.



    Since everything must be done for the benefit of the citizens on both banks of the River Prut, the Moldovan Prime Minister, Dorin Recean, invited economic companies from Romania to invest in the Republic of Moldova: Today, we discussed the nine projects for the second installment of the aid provided by the Government of Romania, worth 100 million. These nine projects are worth 28 million Euros and they will go to investments, providing opportunities to our companies, and will develop the localities of the Republic of Moldova.



    In parallel with managing the crises caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine, from the immediate vicinity, Bucharest and Chișinău must emphasize the development of infrastructure – bridges, roads and energy networks.



    Marcel Ciolacu has more: I guarantee you that in the next Government meeting, money will be earmarked for projects regarding drinking water and sewage, which are necessary to support the villages in the Republic of Moldova, to be European villages.



    Romania is willing to share its legislative experience in Moldovas European integration project, said the Speaker of the Romanian Senate, Nicolae Ciucă. Earlier this week, also in Chișinău, the new Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminiţa Odobescu, pointed out that Bucharest was taking consistent diplomatic steps to advance the EU integration process of Moldova, with particular emphasis on the objective of opening the accession negotiations as soon as possible. (LS)

  • Government to save more money

    Government to save more money


    With revenue receipts in the first part of the year lower than the estimates, the Romanian government finds itself in the situation of resorting to more spending cuts in an attempt to maintain the budget deficit within its admitted limits. After having assessed the budget structure, experts cautioned over the possibility of overrated budgeted revenues and underrated expenses, as early as last year.


    The coalition government in Bucharest is expected to officially make public the reform package aimed at saving billions of euros by the end of the year. The aforementioned measures have been listed in a draft bill to be approved in the first government sitting. The countrys Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca has again given assurances the measures arent going to affect salaries, jobs or investment as they arent austerity measures but aimed at streamlining the economy.


    Nicolae Ciuca: “Through these fiscal measures, we are going to approve after having made a decision within the coalition, we want to make sure we are going to meet the deficit target. And we are not speaking here of austerity measures because we have seen in the past years that not only the Romanian economy, but any other economy cannot develop and function within its normal parameters based on austerity measures. However, we can definitely speak about improvement measures and the appropriate management of public money.”


    In turn, Finance Minister, Adrian Câciu, explains that it all comes down to streamlining public spending so that it may create the needed fiscal room for support measures for the economy and people. Various publications in Romania have already made public the aforementioned bill aimed at curbing expenditures, which also provides for freezing state employment in 2023 and canceling any pay rise. So personnel expenses in public institutions arent going to exceed those in 2022.


    The bill also provides for procurement and bans any purchase, hire or lease takeovers of cars or office equipment. Only the newly-established public authorities and institutions as well as investment objectives are exempted from this decision. The ordinance also bans the pension-salary accumulation for a state employee except for those working as teachers in various education institutions as well as the specialized personnel in medical units. The measure also targets pensioners from the armed forces, including the incumbent Prime Minister, who is a career serviceman. According to political sources, the document hasnt been endorsed by the coalition yet.


    Against the background of the latest debates on the appropriate public spending, pundits are asking a legitimate question: why temperance and discipline in spending public money are being considered only at times of budget deficit?


    (bill)


  • The National Recovery and Resilience Plan, an extraordinary chance

    The National Recovery and Resilience Plan, an extraordinary chance

    The Romanian government admits the existence of a hole in the budget of 20 billion lei, the equivalent of 4 billion euros, and is looking for solutions to cover it. The target is to maintain the deficit at 4.4% of the GDP. The Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă has given assurances that salaries or other types of income will not be cut. Among the solutions considered are the inclusion of salary increases and the reduction of certain allowances, in parallel with measures to reduce tax evasion. When the budget was adopted, there were experts who warned that some revenues were overestimated and some expenses underestimated, and this overlap, once confirmed, could only lead to an increase in the deficit.



    Eugen Rădulescu, the director of the Financial Stability Directorate of the National Bank of Romania – BNR, believes that the main cause of the external deficit is the public deficit. Present at a conference, the National Bank expert spoke about the great risks posed by the twin deficits. The current account deficit has exceeded 9% of the GDP and is the highest, including as compared to the countries in the area, and the budget deficit, although it has decreased, remains at a high value. The excessive budget deficit had pushed Romania, before the pandemic, close to the start of an infringement procedure, the BNR expert recalls.



    The National Recovery and Resilience Plan therefore represents a real breath of fresh air, Eugen Rădulescu believes: “We are talking about some astonishingly large amounts of money, which could be attracted into the national economic circuit, and we are also talking about measures that are provided in this program, which are meant to restore the macroeconomic balances that don’t look good at all. A lot of political will is needed, as the measures that have to be adopted are neither popular nor easy to adopt”.



    On the other hand, Romania benefits from two better developments than initially anticipated, economic growth and relative stability of the exchange rate, which are the result of the natural movement of the market and not of the interventions of the Central Bank, says Eugen Rădulescu, the director of the Financial Stability Directorate of the BNR. In relation to inflation, although the annual rate will accelerate its decline in the coming months and it will most likely fall below 10% in the 3rd quarter of the year, we should not expect key interest rate cuts anytime soon, says Cristian Popa, a member of the Board of Directors of the BNR.



    According to him, there are many factors that put pressure on inflation. These include war, protectionism, the green economy, which is more expensive. The erosion of liberalism is also inflationary, the Central Bank official adds, because, when the authorities get too involved in companies, in the private economy, they create regulatory costs, rules and bureaucracy, and these can push prices up. (LS)

  • Romanians pay record-high energy prices

    Romanians pay record-high energy prices


    According to a survey by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Foundation Romania has the highest increase in utility bills in European Union. Utility prices in Romania are presently 124% higher than the reference value in 2015 whereas the European average stays around 110. At the same time the inflation-consumption price ratio stays around 115%, which means the Romanians are shelling out more money to cover all their expenses.


    The sad daily reality is confirming the statistics, which unfortunately arent of much help in this case. And the arrival of the cold season has increased the worries of the Romanians about the soaring prices in electricity, gas or in some cases firewood. There is only one alternative: no money, no electricity and household heating.


    On the other hand, Parliament debates on the latest government ordinance on capping electricity prices are going on. The ruling Social-Democrats say the


    bill must be amended and are asking, among other things, for the capping to be based on this years consumption and not on the one last year, as the document now stipulates to the disadvantage of many Romanians. The co-ruling PNL, wants the capping to be based on the consumption in the past three years. At the Parliament debates the National Authority for Energy Regulation (ANRE) says the most equitable form of capping should be based on a past consumption record as it would be difficult for providers to calculate the right price based on this years consumption.


    Energy providers, which are the main beneficiaries of the soaring prices, say that after the governments ordinance on the present capping came into effect on September 1st, they have already been facing a series of liquidity issues due to delayed settlements. According to them, this situation is creating a major risk of financial blockage, and if an energy provider enters insolvency its customers will be taken over by the other providers under certain conditions.


    But if the problem could be easily solved in the case of the small providers, the situation is going to be completely different in the case of energy providers with millions of customers.


    Besides cold and darkness, the Romanians are also worried about a possible shortage of Romanian food products, as the latest price hikes in energy and fuel are also bearing on the agricultural field. For this reason, farmers have recently called on the government to take quick measures and introduce agriculture among the sectors benefitting from capped electricity prices. Because, they say, protecting agriculture, a vital sector for the populations food security is of strategic importance.


    (bill)


  • The Recovery and Resilience Facility has been adopted

    The Recovery and Resilience Facility has been adopted

    The European Parliament has adopted the Recovery and
    Resilience Facility, a 672.5 billion Euros system of loans and grants available
    to support reforms and investment undertaken by member states with a view to mitigating
    the economic and social impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.




    The instrument is expected to enter into force in the
    second half of February and member states will have to prepare recovery and
    resilience plans that set out a coherent package of reforms and public
    investment projects. 13% of the sums can be made available right away and 70%
    must be contracted until the end of next year. It is essential to defeat the
    virus with vaccines but we also have a duty to help citizens, enterprises and
    communities to get out of the economic crisis, the head of the European
    Commission Ursula von der Leyen said.




    The mechanism has been structured around several main pillars:
    green
    transition, digital transformation, economic cohesion, productivity and
    competitiveness; social and territorial cohesion; health, economic, social and
    institutional resilience; policies for the next generation.






    The new financial mechanism is expected to allow the
    EU to reach its goal of climate neutrality and make headway in the process of
    digital transition creating fresh jobs and boosting economic growth.




    Romania has been earmarked 30.44 billion euros in
    funds that can be used to build and streamline its hospitals, to fund plans for
    the institutional training and crisis response as well as for child & youth
    policies. The national recovery and resilience plans should devote at least 37%
    of total expenditure to investments and reforms that support climate objectives
    and at least 20% to digital transition. The money could not be used to fund 5G
    networks of some hostile companies from outside the EU. Funds also cannot be
    used to cover budget deficits and expenses. Romania’s recovery plan is
    currently under public discussion and permanent talks are being held with
    European Commission representatives.






    Romania’s Prime Minister Florin Citu has hailed the vote
    in the European Parliament underlining that money is important in the recovery
    of an economy affected by the medical crisis. ‘We are going to use this money
    carefully to fund investment in infrastructure, digitization, green economy and
    structural reforms. The government wants to complete as soon as possible the National
    Plan of Recovery and Resilience so that Romania may have access to this
    European funding shortly, the Romanian official went on to say.


    (bill)

  • Creating a budget for the EU

    Creating a budget for the EU

    Promoting divergent views on the EU budget for next year, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU are currently negotiating to reconcile their positions. At the end of the talks, the Commission might well find itself forced to come up with a new budget structure.



    The budget put forth by the Commission, amounting to 168.3 billion euros, is roughly midway between the one supported by Parliament and the one created by the Council. The EP voted in favour of a 170.97 billion euro budget, whereas the Council, which represents the member states and rejected the amendments tabled by the Parliament, would like a budget of 166.8 billion, accounting for an increase of only 0.6% compared to last years figure.



    The priorities of the Council, the Parliament and the Commission are the same, the European Commissioner for Budget Gunther Oettinger said however in Strasbourg, listing among these priorities the economic growth and jobs, the youth, migration and strengthening Europes environmental policy. Speaking to Radio Romania, the MEP Siegfried Muresan talked about the Unions financial situation and priorities:



    Siegfried Muresan: “This is the last year of the 2014-2020 financial cycle, so there can be no miracles at this point. This cycle was planned back in 2013, and a lot has happened since then, which the European policymakers could not have predicted. First of all, we had the refugee crisis, we needed money for securing Europes borders, for increasing investments—and Id like to mention the setup of a special investment fund, called the Juncker Plan, for strategic investments, which mobilized investments of 440 billion euros leading to the employment of 1.1 million people in the EU. What Im trying to say is that we are entering the last year of this cycle, and most of the reserves have been used up for these unforeseen measures. It is now important for us to finance properly the traditional, classical priorities of the EU, so that the Union may be able to cover the expenses of the EU fund beneficiaries. The demand for funding is growing, which is why it is important that we have managed to come up with a budget that ensures the timely coverage of all these expenses.



    Seeking to get as close as possible to the goal of earmarking 20% of the total 2014-2020 budget for environment-related expenses, as planned in 2013, the European Parliament pays special attention to climate change. Estimates indicate that the target will not be achieved, particularly because of the small climate-related expenses in 2014, but the Parliament wants to contribute significantly to innovation, research and new, environment-friendly technologies next year. It also intends to support digitization, to help climate research as well as research in the field of severe disease and of more efficient farming. All these are adding to the efforts to create new jobs, to strengthen the competitiveness of the Unions economy and to reduce poverty.



    The Parliaments priorities related to climate, the future and youth are shared by the Council. The challenge is that 2020 is the last year of the current financial cycle, a year when some net payers will want to reduce the budget whereas other member countries would like more money in the field of cohesion and agriculture. Moreover, the Brexit situation remains uncertain, which in turn entails some costs.



    Siegfried Muresan: “In 2013 the UK signed the Unions multiannual budget for 2014-2020. In other words, irrespective of the actual date of its leaving the Union, Britain has committed to contribute to the community budget until December 31, 2020. And since they have contributed to the budget, it is only fair that they should also benefit from it. Britain has paid an annual average of 10 billion euros more than it has received, so obviously when the UK leaves, the Union will be 10 billion euros short. What do we do about it? First of all, we will reduce red tape in accessing EU funds, we will make it easier for beneficiaries to get EU funding, which means that each beneficiary will have smaller management expenses. We will do more with each euro of the EU budget. This is a first measure. The second is that each member state will have to contribute slightly more than before, and the third is that there will be budget cuts in the fields that require less money.



    According to the Romanian MEP, these budget cuts will not affect Romania, because the EU believes Romania still needs help and as such it will receive help in the forthcoming 7-year cycle as well.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • More money for the local communities

    More money for the local communities

    In a last minute move, the interim Social Democratic government in Bucharest, which was dismissed last week through a motion of no confidence, approved a decision under which around 300 million Euros will be redistributed to local communities to ensure their functioning until the end of the year. It is a distribution to city halls of the sums broken down from the VAT, according to various expenditure chapters. As many as 1,600 localities will receive funding. However, the money is not enough for the needs of the local communities.



    According to the local administration representatives and to the government decision substantiation note, this autumn some 8.5 billion lei were needed for the local budgets to be closed, of which 4.7 billion lei (around 990 million Euros) are operating expenses and 3.8 billion lei (around 800 million Euros) are expenses for development.



    Outgoing finance minister Eugen Teodorovici has given assurances that the money will be allotted fairly, depending on the local communities’ needs and not on political criteria. He has explained that the final form of the government decision has taken into account the budget execution for September for each local community.



    Eugen Teodorovici: “This money distribution gives priority to ensuring the operating expenses such as personnel expenses, including expenses for people with severe disabilities and their personal assistants and the monthly entitlements for the people with disabilities. Money will also be granted to ensure the goods and services for keeping the education units, the child protection institutions and the public centers for people with disabilities. We’ll also cover other urgent expenses, which are necessary in 2019 and whose payment cannot be postponed.”



    There was also a suggestion to redistribute 23 million lei to all communes of Romania so as to ensure their functioning for at least three months. The outgoing finance minister has pointed out that the money will be granted to all localities, whether or not they requested it from the Finance Ministry. He believes that this year the government has made a historic money allocation to local communities and thus Romania can obtain a deficit of under 3% of the GDP at the end of the year.



    The government also approved the allocation from the reserve fund of the money necessary for heating during the winter season in several localities of Romania, including the capital Bucharest, which will receive 100 million lei. As regards the National Local Development Program, the situation will be sorted out at the next government meeting, so that all invoices submitted by the local communities to the Ministry for Development should be paid, minister Eugen Teodorovici added. (translation by L. Simion)

  • February 12, 2019 UPDATE

    February 12, 2019 UPDATE

    STATE BUDGET The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, said on Tuesday that the 2019 state budget bill drafted by the left-of-centre Power is “rushed and based on unrealistic economic estimates. The head of state warned that this is not the budget of the Social Democratic Party, but of Romania, and that stability and prosperity in the years to come depend on this, reads a news release issued by the Presidency. Iohannis is particularly critical of the funding cuts affecting national security institutions, which he sees as an irresponsible decision. Similar comments had been made previously by the right-wing Opposition as well. In Parliament, debates on the budget bill continued in the specialised committees, with the final vote scheduled for Friday. The budget is based on an estimated economic growth rate of 5.5%, a budget deficit of 2.5% of GDP and a GDP of over 200 billion euros.




    BANKING The Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isarescu, Tuesday assured Parliament that there is no deviation of the ROBOR index from the true market level. In a hearing at the Senates committees on budget-finances and the economy, Isarescu explained that the current level of ROBOR, the index used in calculating floating interest rates for national currency loans, can only fluctuate within the 1.5% to 3.5% range, because this is the only way the central bank can attract deposits from and provide loans to commercial banks. On the other hand, the chair of the Senates economic committee Daniel Zamfir (ALDE, a junior party in the ruling coalition), said the Romanian banking sector had the lowest financial intermediation rate in the EU, and profit rates twice the EU average. The dispute between Zamfir and Isarescu deepened after in January the local currency, the leu, dropped to all-time lows against the euro for several consecutive days. During the same period, ROBOR came close to 3%, pushing up the interests for national currency loans.




    EU The EU member states committed on Tuesday to consolidate the legal framework for the supervision of financial institutions, in order to find the best means to fight money laundering. The Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union was invited to initiate as soon as possible negotiations with the European Parliament on the relevant legislative package. According to the Radio Romania correspondent in Brussels, the Romanian Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici, who chaired the ECOFIN meeting, emphasised that the rules for combating money laundering will be fully implemented in all EU member countries.




    DEFENCE The Romanian defence minister Gabriel Leş is taking part on Wednesday and Thursday in a meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels. According to a news release, topics of major interest are on the agenda, concerning the implementation of the decisions made in the latest NATO summit last year. On the sidelines of the meeting, the Romanian official will also have bilateral talks with his counterparts from the UK, Canada, and other NATO member and partner countries, including Georgia and Ukraine.




    FRAUD Bucharests “Carol Davila Medical and Pharmacy University announced that a woman working as a volunteer physician in a public hospital in Bucharest does not appear in its records as a graduate of Bachelors and Masters degrees. The Healthcare Minister, Sorina Pintea, says the documents presented by the individual, who had been practicing gynaecology for 10 years, are forged, and that a criminal investigation will be initiated in this case. Prompted by a media investigation, the new case follows the one involving an Italian citizen who worked unlawfully as a plastic surgeon in private clinics in Romania. A secondary school graduate working as a parking valet in Italy, he already had a 1.5-years suspended sentence in his own country, for claiming to be a physician for a long time.




    DIPLOMACY The US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, Tuesday travelled to Slovakia as part of his on-going European tour. In Bratislava, he reiterated the statements made previously in Hungary, concerning the importance of supporting Ukraines sovereignty and integrity, and said that Western Allies must not allow Russia to create division between NATO member states. Moscow is not the only power intent on eroding freedom in the region, Pompeo also warned, hinting at China. The US officials tour also includes Warsaw and Brussels, where he will have talks with the EU diplomacy chief Federica Mogherini.




    TENNIS Romanias womens tennis team went up 3 places and is currently ranked 5th with 8,912.5 points, in the Fed Cup standings released by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The increase is owing to the away win against trophy holder the Czech Republic on Sunday. Romanias next opponent in the Fed Cup semis is France, ranking 4th with 12,995 points, after defeating Belgium (3-1), in Liege. Romania outplayed the Czech Republic, 3-2, thanks to Simona Haleps 2 wins and to Irina Begu and Monica Niculescus victory in the doubles. Romania will take on France away from home on April 20th and 21st, in its first presence in the Fed Cup semi-finals since 1973.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Romania After the Presidential Election

    Romania After the Presidential Election

    There will be no increased volatility on the domestic financial markets following the recent presidential election in Romania. On the short term, the effects might even be positive. That is the forecast of the Austrian group Erste, whose analysts have pointed out that things might change depending on political developments, as a possible redesign of the parliamentary majority might trigger the change of the government and have economic effects.



    For the time being, Social Democrat Prime Minister Victor Ponta, who lost the presidential race, has given assurances that he will continue to govern the country in spite of calls for his resignation by the rightist opposition and certain politicians from his own party. The Government’s top priority in the wake of the election is, according to Erste analysts, to provide the 2015 draft budget to cover the pre-election populist measures. Those measures were firmly challenged by the opposition whose candidate, Klaus Johannis won a landslide victory in the presidential election. Economic analyst Aurelian Dochia believes that the recent election will only have a short-term emotional impact:



    “On the short and medium term, the fundamental data will outweigh, no doubt about it. The excitement generated by the election will fade out and it is the economic indicators that will influence markets.”



    A 2015 draft budget is essential to determine how foreign investors will regard Romania, Erste analysts say, warning that there might be some risks likely to prevent the GDP from going up by 1.8% this year, as they had previously estimated. Romania’s GDP increased by 1.9% in the third quarter of the year, as against the previous three months, and by 3.2% as against the third quarter of 2013. Consumption and exports made an important contribution to that result, while investment went down at a lower rate as compared to the previous period.



    Special attention should be paid to the less favourable international circumstances. The world economy has reached its lowest level in the last two years and Europe’s stagnation remains a major stumbling block. Almost two thirds of the investors interviewed by the Bloomberg agency, say the euro zone’s situation worsens by the day, while 89% of them believe that next year deflation will be a bigger threat to economy than inflation. On the same note, the International Monetary Fund chief, Christine Lagarde, has said that the euro zone faces the serious risk of slipping back into recession, for four main reasons: a low economic growth rate, a low inflation rate, a high unemployment rate and huge debts.