TODAY’S NEWS
POLITICS
14:54 Romanian Energy Minister Virgil Popescu wrote on his Facebook page on Friday that Abu Dhabi renewable energy firm Masdar and Romania’s biggest power producer Hidroelectrica will collaborate for the production of renewable energy, with discussions at technical level already being in progress. TAQA, the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, is also interested in the development of energy transport infrastructure projects, he added.
10:32 Romania’s Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca met on Thursday in Bucharest with Alfonso Garcia Mora, International Financial Corporation Vice-President, with talks highlighting that this arm of the World Bank Group is interested in developing investments in areas related to infrastructure, energy transition, and the reduction of development gaps between regions, the government said in a release.
09:17 Romania’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister Sorin Grindeanu told a news conference on Thursday that with the signing of the contracts for the construction of lots 2 and 3 of the Buzau – Focsani section, there are nine out of a total of 13 lots of the Ploiesti-Pascani Highway that are funded through the National Resilience and Recovery Plan (PNNR).
09:08 Accession to the Schengen Area is a major priority for Romania, Foreign Affairs Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Thursday noting that our country counts on Sweden’s support in this file, as a mediator, having taken over the six-month Presidency of the Council of the European Union on January 1, Agerpres reported.
ECONOMY
15:01 Non-residents’ direct investments in Romania stood at EUR 10,296 million in the first 11 months of 2022, up 28.36% y-o-y, according to the data published by the National Bank of Romania (BNR).
14:44 The Ministry of Finance has established a ceiling of RON 1.5 billion for guaranteeing real estate loans under the government programme New Home in 2023. Launched in 2009 under the name of Prima Casa (First Home) the programme has so far collected 330,875 guarantees and guarantee promises totaling RON 31.3 billion.
11:00 Romania’s economy is seen growing by only 0.5% in 2023, according to an analysis by Wood, the largest brokerage firm in Central and Eastern Europe. However, there may be pleasant surprises, the brokerage says.
10:45 Romania’s annual inflation rate eased to 16.37% in December 2022, from 16.76% in the previous month and slightly below market expectations of 16.6%. Prices for non-food products slowed (14.95% vs 16.17% in November), the National Institute of Statistics (INS) data showed.
10:11 Romania’s industrial production dropped by 1.1%, as unadjusted series, in the first 11 months of 2022 y-o-y, according to INS data.
09:38 Romania’s finance ministry raised RON1.55 billion on Thursday through two government bond issues, at annual average yields of 7.60% and 7.49%, National Bank of Romania data showed.
COMPANIES & BUSINESS
12:28 Raiffeisen Bank teams up with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) for increased access to funding of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps companies in Romania.
11:17 New car registrations increased by 6.8% in 2022, compared to 2021, with “electrified” cars registering a jump of 49% and a 21.7% market share of the total, according to statistics from the Association of Automobile Manufacturers and Importers (APIA).
09:19 A vital criterion for large investors remains the stability, predictability, and transparency of the legislative framework, however this criterion was not met for the measures taken by Romania in the energy domain, the latest edition of the Business Sentiment Index (BSI) published by the Foreign Investors Council (FIC) reveals.
09:00 Sanitary-veterinary inspectors seized more than six tonnes of frozen beef, originating from intra-community trade and import, during a control action carried out between January 8 and 10, 2023, according to the National Veterinary Sanitary and Food Safety Authority (ANSVSA).
TODAY’S MARKET
EXCHANGE RATES
| EUR 4.9413 | GBP 5.5749 |
| USD 4.5588 | CHF 5.9145 |
| BGN 2.5264 | MDL 0.2395 |
BNR INTEREST RATES
| Deposit facility: | 6% |
| Policy rate: | 7% |
| Lending facility: | 8% |
INFLATION RATE
| 16.37% (Dec. 2022) BNR Target 2022: 2.50% (variation band: ± 1pp) |
BUCHAREST STOCK EXCHANGE (BVB) INDICES
| BET -1.04%, BET-TR -1.04%, BET-FI -0.48%, BET-NG -0.93%, BET-XT -0.92%, BETXT-TR -0.92%, BET-BK 0.75%, RO-TX -1.10%, BETAeRO 1.59% |
CAPITAL MARKET COMMENTARY
| Bucharest stocks head into the weekend lower bucking the uptrend across Europe where markets closed higher following an upbeat batch of economic data reports. Both the United Kingdom and Eurozone trade deficits shrunk, while the euro area’s industrial production increased 1% and the UK GDP rose 0.1%. |
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