Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă met with representatives of the Foreign
Investors Council at Victoria Palace on Tuesday, 31 January. Several
topics related to the tax regime, the digitalization of administration,
the reduction of bureaucracy, the stability and predictability of the
fiscal framework and investment plans in Romania were approached during
the dialog. The Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for foreign
business people’s growing interest in Romania, confirmed by the
"record" volume of direct investments made in 2022, which exceeded EUR
11.3 billion, the highest level of the past 30 years.
On Friday, 3 February, the Ministry of Finance is to launch a new issue
of TEZAUR government securities for the population exclusively, with
one-, two- and thee-year maturities and annual interest rates of 7.20%,
7.50% and 8% respectively. The government bonds have a nominal value of
RON 1 and are available in dematerialized form. The funds obtained by
the Ministry of Finance as the issuer will be used to finance the
budget deficit and refinance the public debt.
Over 6,700 companies faced insolvency in 2022, 10% more than in 2021
(6,144). 67 of these are impact companies with more than 5,500
employees, over RON 1.5 billion assets and more than RON 170 million
debts to the state budget, according to an analysis conducted by CITR.
Impact companies to have faced insolvency in 2022 accounted for about
1% of the total number of companies in imminent insolvency, a similar
percentage as the one recorded in 2021.
The European Union has the third largest economy in the world,
accounting for one-sixth of global trade, worth USD 16 trillion (EUR
14.6 trillion), according to statistics. Altogether, the 27 member
countries make up one internal market allowing free movement of goods,
services, capital and people. The European Union’s economic strength is
supported by three economic giants, per data from the International
Monetary Fund. Put together, the GDPs of Germany (USD 4 trillion),
France (USD 2.7 trillion) and Italy (USD 1.9 trillion) account for more
than half of the EU’s entire economic output.
UniCredit Consumer Financing, part of the UniCredit financial group,
has launched an offer for RON-denominated mortgage-free, fixed-rate
consumer loan products, with gradually applied interest rate
reductions, depending on the borrowed sums and the fulfilment of
certain conditions. The fixed annual interest rate can thus reach a
minimum of 7.99% for a Personal Loan with fixed interest for borrowed
amounts between RON 120,000 and RON 150,000 provided the borrower
cashes their income into an account opened with UniCredit Bank on the
loan granting date and throughout the crediting period, a life
insurance policy is attached to the loan and the loan in question is
used to refinance a loan previously granted by another bank.
Intesa Sanpaolo Group’s Financial Literacy International Network
(FLITIN) has launched the first international edition dedicated to high
school students aged 16-18 from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia, Egypt, Hungary, Moldova, Romania and Serbia who want to get
actively involved and take a new approach to their lifestyle, following
the objectives of economic and environmental sustainability, according
to information transmitted by bank representatives. The initiative,
based on the S.A.V.E Sustainability, Action, Travel, Experience)
content, a virtual tour, a journey towards a sustainable future by the
Museum of Savings aims to bring young people closer to the themes of
sustainability, circular economy, social inclusion and financial
education.
Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), the Austrian group which
Raiffeisen Bank Romania is also a part of, ended 2022 with a EUR 3.62
billion consolidated profit, more than double the result recorded in
2021, according to the group’s financial report. If gains obtained in
Russia and Belarus, as well as the sale of the bank in Bulgaria, are
excluded, the profit drops to EUR 982 million, up by 35% year-on-year.
The National Bank of Romania (NBR)’s foreign exchange reserves grew by
EUR 3.56 billion in January 2023 compared to December 2022, to EUR 50.2
billion, following EUR 4.75 billion inflows and EUR 1.18 billion
outflows. The EUR 4.75 billion inflows represented changes in credit
institutions’ foreign currency-denominated required reserves with the
NBR, inflows into the Ministry of Finance’s accounts (including net
nominal amounts of approximately USD 3,753 million from the Ministry of
Finance issues of USD-denominated Eurobonds), inflows into the European
Commission’s account and other.
Policolor - Orgachim group has started works for the expansion of its
paints factory in Bucharest, a project it will invest about EUR 2
million into, and expects a EUR 90 million turnover for 2023.
Constructions company Masterbuild has been designated as general
contractor for the expansion project and will build an additional 1,000
square meter space, apart from the existing 3,500 square meters, at the
Policolor factory on Timișoara Boulevard in Bucharest.
Medicover, one of the biggest private healthcare service providers in
Romania, is to open a hospital in Bucharest in the second half of 2023.
Medicover’s investment in the new hospital amounts to EUR 20 million
and involves transforming and returning to the community a 15,000
square meter office building located at 11 Șoseaua Fabricii de Glucoză,
close to Bucharest-Ploieşti highway and to the two Medicover clinics in
Pipera area.
TeraPlast group is preparing new investments in 2023. Total investments
will amount to RON 102 million, of which the most important projects
target a new factory for the production of stretch wrap and a new
photovoltaic plant. The group thus continues to diversify its activity
areas and the geographical regions where it is developing businesses,
in parallel with green investments aimed at sustainably increasing the
group’s energy independence, based on governmental economic support
programs.
On Tuesday, 1 February, the Government approved a normative act
following which several vaccines that are not part of the national
healthcare programs will be included into the list of subsidized
medicines the insured benefit from. The emergency ordinance approved on
Tuesday amends and completes the health reform law, as well as other
normative acts on sick leave and health insurance benefits. The
equivalent value of these medicines will be borne by the state budget,
through transfers to the Single National Health Insurance Fund’s
budget, via the Ministry of Health.
The Government approved, during the meeting on Tuesday, 31 January,
upon the Environment, Waters and Forests Ministry’s proposal, the
Decision amending and completing the Regulation on the Recovery of Wood
from the Public Forest Fund approved through Government Decision
715/2017. The Decision regulates, among other things, the possibility
of directly capitalizing on round and split working wood, in addition
to firewood, without an auction and negotiations.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen presented the Green
Deal Industrial Plan on Wednesday (1 February) in an effort by the EU
to keep up with a worldwide race in subsidy schemes for green
industries. As the EU aims for climate neutrality by 2050, key
industries such as the manufacturing of wind turbines, solar panels,
and battery-electric vehicles must be ready to supply the necessary
technologies to decarbonise the economy. Countries around the world are
therefore boosting subsidy schemes for green industries, von der Leyen
said, mentioning Japan, India, the UK, Canada, and the US Inflation
Reduction Act.
Unemployed people’s families had a very difficult year in 2022, as the
level of expenses grew by 27% for them in a single year. The situation
of employees’ families was not necessarily better either, as wage
increases failed to cover the price rises. Pensioner families were the
only ones to have recorded a bigger increase in income than in expenses
in 2022, but obviously their incomes remain nominally low.
Unemployment rate in Romania was 5.6% in December 2022, up by 0.2%
against the level recorded in November 2022 (5.4%), according to data
published by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). By gender, the
unemployment rate among men exceeded that of women by 0.7% (the
respective values being 5.9% for men and 5.2% for women). Unemployed
people aged 25-74 accounted for 73.6% of the total number of unemployed
people estimated for December 2022.