Experts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are recommending modifications to the recently adopted pension law by the Government. According to government sources cited by Agerpres, the IMF estimates that the expenses resulting from the implementation of the new pension law will be approximately 0.5% of the GDP in 2024 and an additional 1% of the GDP starting in 2025. The IMF mission, following its visit to Romania, is preparing the final Article IV report on the financial situation of Romania, which will be presented to the board. In light of the new pension law, the report will include a paragraph emphasizing that “the projection presented in the report does not include the expenses resulting from the application of the new pension law, estimated at approximately 0.5% of GDP in 2024 and an additional 1% of GDP starting in 2025,” as stated by the source cited by Agerpres. Additionally, it will be mentioned that these additional expenses imply a deficit trajectory inconsistent with fiscal consolidation and achieving the 3% of GDP target. The cited source further highlighted that IMF representatives emphasize the need for the component of the law involving these expenses to be “reconsidered, or the implementation of the law in the proposed form to be reconsidered.” The controversial pension law project, approved by the Executive on Thursday, has sparked debates within the Coalition. According to the Minister of Labor, Simona Bucura Oprescu, 2024 will be the first year in which a government will grant two pension increases—one based on inflation plus 50% of the real increase in the average gross wage, and the other through recalculation. She stated on Thursday that the additional impact compared to the increase in the current law, with recalculation from September to December 2024, amounts to 10 billion lei.
Romania’s profit share, defined as the proportion of value added distributed by non-financial corporations to capital rather than labour, fell for the second consecutive year to 48.1% in 2024, Eurostat reported on December 7. The ratio was 40.0% on average in the European Union, with below-average ratios in more developed countries such as France (32.2%) […]
The pension law "brutally violates the independence of the judiciary" and "de facto eliminates the service pension for magistrates," according to the reasoning published by the High Court (ICCJ) along with its decision to refer the magistrates' pensions law to the Constitutional Court, Ziarul Financiar reported. ...
The Romanian state, in a document on December 5, expressed its intention to take full control of the National Airports Company of Bucharest (CNAB), which operates Otopeni Airport and Baneasa Airport, where the minority shareholder Fondul Proprietatea has a 20% stake, Ziarul Financiar reported. The...
Romania's Interministerial Committee for Supporting the Implementation of Reform 9 (CNR9), led by deputy prime minister Oana Gheorghiu, has selected 17 state-owned enterprises from a total of about 1,500 to undergo initial screening ahead of potential restructuring or liquidation. The decision marks the first stage of a wider overhaul programme announced by prime minister Ilie […]
The retail sales volume index in Romania recovered for the second consecutive month in October, when it increased by 0.9% m/m after the 1.3% m/m advance in September – but it was far from fully recovering the 4.0% m/m plunge seen in August as an effect of higher VAT rate enforcement amid already negative consumer […]
Romania’s total market production index (TMPI), a composite indicator compiled by Eurostat that combines four short-term business statistics indicators covering most of the market economy, increased by 4.2% y/y in Q3 - the sharpest rise in seven quarters (+0.3% y/y in Q2) and twice the 2.1% average advance in the European Union. The seasonally-adjusted index […]
