Lei depositors are penalized by low interest rates, which is a reason why BNR will have to increase interest rates further to prevent a migration to the euro, the so-called Euroization of the economy, Valentin Lazea, chief economist at the national Bank of Romania (BNR), said recently at a specialized conference. The BNR official said that the rate between loans and deposits is kept subunit both for the lei – 0.82 in April as well as for foreign currency – 0.51 in April. ‘In other words, there are fewer loans both in lei and in foreign currency than deposits in banks. What does it mean? It means that the banks have sufficient funds for lending, but they do not find enough possibilities to place them – and this is happening as almost 40% of the Romanian companies are non-bankable – a story which has been lasting for 30 years – nobody wants to deal with it. What is 40% of the non-bankable companies? It means lower capital than 200 lei or negative capital. Lending could exist, but first you need to exist the capitalization of the companies’ Lazea said.As regards lending, the first five months of 2022, despite the war in Ukraine, lending has increased in nominal terms, both the governmental one and the non-governmental. As regards the profitability of the banking system, the BNR head economist said that, after four months, namely between January – April, the cumulated profit is 2.9 million lei, being approximately similar to the previous year, when it was almost 8,2 billion lei, for the whole year.
On Monday, December 23, Romanian police brought Nica Robert Florin back to the country. The man convicted of possession of high-risk drugs, bodily harm, and driving under the influence of alcohol, is listed among Romania’s Most Wanted category and was also wanted internationally. Romanian authorities revealed at the beginning of October that they had indications […]
An investigation by the famous British newspaper Financial Times revealed that the campaign of former Romanian presidential candidate Călin Georgescu was supported by a Russian network also used during the pandemic in France and Germany to instill fear of vaccines. The newspaper’s investigation began in continuation of those by Bulgarian and Romanian journalists at BG...
Bucharest’s District 3 City Hall will once again organize a special New Year’s Eve event in Titan Park, with a program of live concerts, multimedia shows, and even a simulation of the Northern Lights. The event, set to begin at 8:00 PM on December 31, will focus on the theme of infinity. “If you missed […]
Traffic on Lot 1 of the A7 Ploiești-Buzău highway, stretching 21 kilometers in southern Romania, was officially opened on Monday, December 23. With this opening, 102 kilometers of the total 320 kilometers of the highway are now usable. The Moldova Highway, as it has been called, is meant to connect Romania's economically underdeveloped eastern regions to […]
The Dutch technology investor Prosus NV, also the majority shareholder of Romania’s largest online retailer eMAG, is set to buy the online travel agency Despegar.com Corp, focused on Latin America, for approximately USD 1.7 billion. The purchase consideration will be funded from existing cash resources, the company said. Founded in Argentina in 1999, Despegar is one […]
The new Forestry Code, which passed the Parliament vote on December 17 and was signed into law by president Klaus Iohannis on December 20, includes provisions that protect all forests in Ilfov, the county surrounding Bucharest, making them the cornerstone of the future green belt around the capital city. Moreover, it legislates green belts nationwide, […]
