The government adopted on last Wednesday two measures to support farm producers affected by drought, providing for financial compensation and the legal suspension of the repayment of current and outstanding loans until August 2025.The decision comes as more than 230,000 farm producers (individuals, companies or family businesses) were hit by drought between September 2023 and August 2024, and provides for drought relief grants in the amount of RON 1,000 for each affected hectare, government spokesman Mihai Constantin said. The aid is disbursable based on a damage assessment minute acknowledging that the affected area is at least 30%. The budget of this state aid scheme is RON two billion.Another measure adopted by the government to support farmers who had difficulties this year provides for the possibility of legally suspending the repayment of current and overdue loans due in 2024, until August 1, 2025. The facility applies provided that two requirements are met: the applicant for suspension must have a record ascertaining an extent of damage of at least 50%; the interest charged by the lender is higher than 2.5% plus ROBOR for loans in RON, and 2% plus EURIBOR for foreign currency loans, Agriculture Minister Florin Barbu explained.Another emergency ordinance adopted on Wednesday aims to expand the "Farmer's Loan" state aid scheme, so that advantageous state-guaranteed loans can also be accessed for the payment of outstanding debts to suppliers and input distributors."We are talking here about 100% state-backed loans with a fixed interest rate of 1.95, and the ROBOR and all other fees are borne by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Government of Romania. (...) Let me tell you one more thing: Romania's self-sufficiency rate for domestic products is 100%. This year's wheat production exceeds by 1.9 million tons the 2023 crop. Practically, we have the necessary output for both animal husbandry and for export," the minister emphasized.
The president of the junior ruling Liberal Party, Nicolae Ciucă, urged prime minister Marcel Ciolacu "to urgently explain what he will do so that Romania does not lose the approximately EUR 1.1bn from the Resilience Facility" suspended by the European Commission for six milestones not met by the country. Ciucă thus validates the EUR 1.1bn […]
Ford Otosan announced on October 15 that it will open in November waiting lists for Romania customers interested in buying the new fully electric model E-Tourneo Courier, produced in the factory in Craiova. The first vehicle deliveries are expected in the first quarter of 2025. The E-Tourneo Courier Trend (passenger version), with a 100 kW […]
Two new private equity funds - Evolving Europe Principal Investments Fund II and Finance in Motion Renewables Growth Fund - will receive up to EUR 27.5 million under the national implementation of the Resilience Facility (PNRR) to invest in Romanian companies, the Romanian Ministry of Investments and European Projects (MIPE) announced. The Investment Committee appointed […]
UniCredit downgraded its 2024 growth forecast for Romania to 1.7% (from 2.4% in July) due to the poor performance in H1 and a slower-than-anticipated recovery in the EU, but it upgraded its 2025 outlook to 1.9% (from 1.3% in July) owing to base effects, according to the latest research report of the financial group. The fiscal...
The medium-term fiscal plan that Romania is supposed to send to the European Commission (EC) this month under the Excessive Deficit Procedure has among its objectives cutting the budget deficit to 2.4% in 2031 and bringing the public debt to GDP ratio under 60% by the end of the seven-year period (after possible deviations above […]
The European Commission announced on October 15 that it had endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of the six targets and 62 out of 68 milestones linked to Romania's third payment request for EUR 2 billion (net of pre-financing) under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. The Commission found that six milestones have not been...
