MARKET MOVING NEWS
ECONOMY
-Romania recorded the second-highest annual inflation rate in the EU, at 5.3% in January 2025, trailing only Hungary, according to Eurostat. Croatia followed with 5% inflation.
-Western European investors—particularly from Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK—have been the most active buyers of Romanian real estate assets over the past five years (2019–2024), with total investments reaching €1.75 billion, according to Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
-Romania’s M&A market in 2024 posted one of its strongest performances in the last five years, with 151 deals valued at over €5 million each, totaling an estimated €5.7–6.1 billion, according to Deloitte Romania.
FINANCE
– High interest rates and continued lending growth propelled the Romanian banking sector to a record profit of approximately RON 14.8 billion in 2024, marking an 8% increase from 2023, according to the National Bank of Romania.
-NAGA, a Frankfurt Stock Exchange-listed fintech, has integrated Bucharest Stock Exchange-listed shares into its investment platform, expanding access to Romanian equities.
-Romania’s private lending increased by 8.8% year-on-year in January 2025, reaching RON 418.6 billion, driven by a 10.9% rise in local currency loans and a 4.1% increase in foreign currency lending, central bank data shows.
-Raiffeisen Bank Romania, the country’s sixth-largest bank by assets, reported a net profit of RON 1.67 billion in 2024, remaining close to 2023 levels, while its total assets surged by 17% to over RON 82 billion.
COMPANIES
-Footprints AI, a Romanian company specializing in AI-powered retail solutions, secured a €2.3 million investment to accelerate international expansion and technology development.
-At the 12th edition of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) Awards, the exchange honored 20 companies, brokerage firms, private pension funds, and investment funds for their achievements in 2024.
TODAY’S MARKET DATA
EXCHANGE RATE OF THE NATIONAL LEU CURRENCY
| EUR 4.9773 | GBP 6.0007 |
| USD 4.7536 | CHF 5.3029 |
| BGN 2.5448 | MDL 0.2549 |
(Source: National Bank of Romania BNR)
BUCHAREST STOCK EXCHANGE (BVB) INDICES
| BET 0.72% BET-TR 0.72% BET-FI 0.35% BET-NG 0.73% BET-EF 0.61% BET-XT 0.60%, BET-BK 0.64% BET AeRO -0.57% ROTX 0.72% |
CAPITAL MARKET COMMENTARY
| Romanian stocks traded in the green on Tuesday, defying the broader downturn across European markets, where investors weighed the impact of Germany’s economic struggles. Europe’s largest economy reported a 0.2% GDP contraction in the final quarter of 2024, with Deutsche Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel warning that no meaningful recovery is expected in the near term. This weighed on sentiment across European indices, most of which closed in the red. Despite the gloomy outlook in Western Europe, Romania’s BET benchmark index advanced 0.72%, with a Aquila, a leading consumer goods distributor surging 3.50% among blue-chip gainers. |
BET Index Constituents
| Company | Price | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|
| ANTIBIOTICE S.A. | 2.3800 | 0.42 |
| AQUILA PART PROD COM | 1.3300 | 3.50 |
| BANCA TRANSILVANIA S.A. | 28.2000 | 0.71 |
| BRD – GROUPE SOCIETE GENERALE S.A. | 18.0000 | -0.11 |
| C.N.T.E.E. TRANSELECTRICA | 45.9000 | 0.00 |
| Digi Communications N.V. | 67.0000 | 1.21 |
| FONDUL PROPRIETATEA | 0.3630 | 0.50 |
| MedLife S.A. | 5.8900 | 1.20 |
| OMV PETROM S.A. | 0.7570 | 1.61 |
| ONE UNITED PROPERTIES | 20.5000 | 0.00 |
| Premier Energy PLC | 19.1000 | -0.98 |
| PURCARI WINERIES PUBLIC COMPANY LIMITED | 14.4200 | -0.55 |
| S.N. NUCLEARELECTRICA S.A. | 42.6500 | 0.47 |
| S.N.G.N. ROMGAZ S.A. | 5.9100 | 1.03 |
| S.N.T.G.N. TRANSGAZ S.A. | 27.7500 | 0.36 |
| S.P.E.E.H. HIDROELECTRICA S.A. | 121.6000 | 0.00 |
| SOCIETATEA ENERGETICA ELECTRICA S.A. | 15.1200 | 0.80 |
| Sphera Franchise Group | 40.7000 | -0.49 |
| TERAPLAST SA | 0.4240 | 1.07 |
| TTS (TRANSPORT TRADE SERVICES) | 5.1700 | -0.77 |
