In January - August 2024, the balance-of-payments current account posted a deficit of EUR 17,858 million, compared with EUR 13,830 million in January - August 2023, the National Bank of Romania (BNR) informs in a press release on Monday.The breakdown shows that the deficit on trade in goods widened by EUR 2,634 million, the surplus on services fell by EUR 863 million, the primary income deficit increased by EUR 979 million, while the secondary income surplus grew by EUR 448 million.Non-residents' direct investments in Romania totalled EUR 4,139 million (compared with EUR 4,382 million in January - August 2023), of which equity (including the estimated reinvestment of earnings) and intercompany lending recorded net values of EUR 3,563 million and EUR 576 million, respectively.In January - August 2024, total external debt increased by EUR 14,189 million to EUR 182,524 million, of which: long-term external debt at end-August 2024 ran at EUR 133,389 million (73.1 percent of total external debt), up 9.2 percent against end-2023; short-term external debt at end-August 2024 amounted to EUR 49,135 million (26.9 percent of total external debt), up 6.3 percent from end-2023.Long-term external debt service ratio stood at 13.8 percent in August 2024 against 18 percent in 2023. At end-August 2024, goods and services import cover ran at 5.9 months, as compared to 5.6 months at end-2023.At end-August 2024, the ratio of the National Bank of Romania's foreign exchange reserves to short-term external debt by remaining maturity came in at 101.1 percent, as against 99.7 percent at end-2023, the central bank points out.
“Catane,” a dark comedy inspired by real events and directed by Ioana Mischie, is set to have its first special screenings in Romania after a successful festival circuit. The film had its world premiere at the IFFI Goa festival in India and was nominated this year at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards for Best […]
Romania is among the European countries where water reserves are decreasing at an alarming rate, according to an analysis carried out by researchers from University College London in collaboration with The Guardian and Watershed Investigations. Scientists analyzed data from the period 2002–2024 provided by satellites that monitor changes in the Earth's...
George Smyth, 18, went missing on a hike near Romania’s famous Bran Castle more than a week ago. On November 23, the British citizen started to suffer from hypothermia and exhaustion and called the emergency services. Trying to locate him, mountain rescue services conducted searches over the next few days but were only able to […]
Over 107,000 people in Prahova and Dâmbovița counties, in southern Romania, have been without drinking water since Friday, November 28, due to problems at the Paltinu Dam. According to local authorities, the problems are set to persist until next week. The dam registered a drop in water levels, leading to problems in the water distribution system. […]
A special ‘Silent Day’ event will be held at the Bucharest Christmas Market in Constituției Square on Wednesday, December 3, aimed at creating a quieter and more accessible environment for children with sensory disabilities. The initiative is designed to make the festive market manageable for children who may struggle with loud noise, bright lights, and […]
Romanians have the highest level of trust in others in the European Union, according to the most recent Eurostat data for the year 2024, ahead of the usual leader of the ranking, Finland. The indicator ‘trust in others’ measures a person’s trust in people they do not know on a scale from 0 (‘I...
