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LEAWOOD woman travels to Romania to volunteer at adoption agency
Kansas City Star (subscription), MO
... And when most of her friends were thinking of moving to cities such as
Washington, DC, Clark, 22, was looking at where she could live in Botosani,
Romania. ...
'DEAD' newborns found alive and well
The Age, Australia
... Meanwhile, the European Union has banned international adoptions in Romania
until it closes down its decrepit orphanages and cleans up an adoptions system
...
Romania will act quickly to slow the rise in consumer loans
and implement economic reforms to prevent further widening of the trade and
current account deficits, the National Bank of Romania Governor Mugur Isarescu
said Tuesday. Isarescu said the current account deficit is expected to advance
toward 6.5% of gross domestic product this year, compared with an initial
forecast of 4.8%. Imports, including those financed through consumer loans, are
widening the trade deficit, and in turn the current account deficit, Isarescu
said. The trade deficit in October alone was nearly $1 billion, he added. "We
have to find measures to correct that," Isarescu said. The latest official data
showed the trade deficit widened to EUR3.55 billion in the first nine months of
the year from EUR2.92 billion a year earlier. The central bank said the main
factors behind the rise were the imports of grains and processed food, domestic
appliances and natural gas. The current account deficit widened to EUR1.647
billion in the first nine months of 2003 from EUR1.023 billion a year earlier.
Isarescu said the widening of the current account deficit might pose financing
problems, pointing to the fact that the central bank had to sell more than $200
million on the foreign-exchange market last month, to stem the depreciation of
the Romanian leu. Consumer loans that fuel some of the imports have risen from
5% of the total loan portfolio to some 27% in one year, and are expected to
continue at the same pace next year, raising questions over sustainability,
Isarescu said. "It is in everybody's interest for this expansion to be more
gradual," Isarescu said in reference to commercial banks' claim that the current
rise is a normal, market-driven trend. In order to slow the rise in consumer
loans the central bank will ask commercial banks to apply stricter rules in
granting loans, such as demanding higher advance payments or setting collateral
guarantees. Sellers will be asked to be more transparent in describing the
overall costs of these loans, and a credit office will be set up to provide
credit histories. To limit commercial banks' appetite for consumer loans the
central bank is also considering the idea of selling deposit certificates to
banks, Isarescu said. The new measures are expected to be implemented at the
beginning of next year. But much of the struggle to contain wider deficits is in
government hands and includes the reform of state-owned companies, the
privatization of the energy sector and fiscal measures. "Monetary measures
aren't the main tools for fixing external imbalances," Isarescu said. "I
guarantee the government will come up with corrective measures." Without
elaborating, Isarescu said the government will soon announce measures to reshape
state-owned industries and the energy sector and to reduce arrears and losses in
the economy. These measures, if implemented, will help to narrow the current
account deficit by one percentage point annually, Isarescu said, adding,
however, that the current account deficit is still likely to be around 6% of GDP
next year. The government has pledged to reduce the work force in state-owned
rail and mining companies next year. It also pledged to privatize SNP Petrom SA,
the country's largest oil company, and two power and two gas suppliers. DOW
JONES
Romania's Finance Ministry said on Tuesday it plans to raise an overall 5.7
trillion lei ($169.3 million) in leu-denominated state securities this month, up
from five trillion in November. It said five issues of discount paper with
maturities of up to one year would be placed via American-style auctions.
Another two issues of two- and three-year interest-bearing paper would be
offered in single-price auctions. A separate, five-year issue of
interest-bearing paper, with the coupon adjusted with the consumer price index
would also be offered in a single-price auction, it said. All issues are
available to Romanian companies and individuals only. The ministry retains the
right to raise, lower or annul their value in line with State Treasury financing
needs and yield levels. REUTERS
Austrian oil and gas company OMV AG (OMV.VI) is examining
whether it will submit a binding offer for a 33.34% stake in Romanian oil
company SNP Petrom SA (SNP.RO), after having made a preliminary bid last month.
"We are still evaluating whether we want to make an offer," Chief Financial
Officer David C. Davies told journalists Monday evening at an investors'
conference in New York. He said OMV has no concrete plans to make combined offer
with a partner for Petrom, responding to market speculation that OMV would need
a partner to bid for such a big company. Davies said OMV wouldn't have submitted
a preliminary bid on its own if that had been the case. However, Davies didn't
rule out a capital increase to finance the deal, adding that in 2001
shareholders approved a capital increase of up to 8 million shares. But that is
one of several financing options OMV is reviewing, said Davies. Petrom would be
a big boost for OMV's operations. OMV produces 117,000 barrel of oil equivalent
a day, while Petrom produces 200,000 boe/d. With 60.000 employees Petrom has
about 10 times the staff of OMV. Deutsche Bank is advising OMV in the matter.
The Romanian government, which holds 93% of SNP Petrom, has set back to Feb. 28
from Jan. 31 the deadline for receiving binding bids for the 33.34% stake for
sale. Eight firms submitted a preliminary offer last month. They were Poland's
PKN Orlen SA (PKN.WA); Hungary's MOL Rt. (MOL.BU); OMV; U.S. Occidental
Petroleum Corp. (OXY); Russia's Gazprom OAO (GSPBEX.RS); Italy's Eni SpA (E);
Hellenic Petroleum SA (ELPE.AT); and Swiss company Glencore International AG (GNC.YY).
The buyer will be obliged to raise its holding to 51% via an additional share
capital increase. DOW JONES
The economy-wide average wage has increased in October by 7.9% y/y CPI-adjusted
terms, down from 9.3% y/y in September. The real wage has increased by 8.6% y/y
in Jan-Oct that is supposed to have been yielding inflationary pressures in
addition to the growing consumer credit. The average number of employees has
grown by 0.25% y/y in Jan-Sep. In the industry, the number of employees has
declined by 1.8%while the real wage increased by 6.1% amid calls for
restructuring in certain loss making industries. Assuming a 4.5% y/y increase in
both GDP and industrial output this year, the ratio of output to employees would
increase by some 6.4% y/y in the industry and 4.2% y/y in the whole economy.
Regarding the sharp increase in real wages this year, it was to a large extent
prompted by the higher minimum wage in January. The government has not decided
yet on the minimum wage next year, but the IMF has already warned on a cautious
stance. ISI
According to a report of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a division of
The Economist group, Romania will register a 4.5% economic increase this year,
mainly supported by the acceleration of the direct foreign investments and the
privatization process. The EIU analysts forecast an economic growth similar to
the one of Bulgaria, over the average registered in Central and Eastern Europe,
respectively 3.1%. This year' GDP in Poland was estimated at 3.3% and at 4.3% in
2004, after improving the financial situation of the corporation field and the
positive tendency of the exports. The economic advance of the Community of the
Independent States (CSI) was estimated to increase up to 6.2% during this year.
The increasing rhythm might be reduced at 4.7% during the next year, because the
oil price is decreasing on the international markets and they will affect both
Russia, and the other producing countries. EIU says that the countries within
the Central Europe that are based mainly on trade with Germany and Italy are
affected by the economic recession from the European Union. The states with the
foreign trade directed towards the Northern part of Europe felt less the effects
of the economic deteriorations within EU. The states within the Central Europe
registered reduced increasing rhythms compared to the Baltic countries that
depend less on the international trade and whose exports are directed towards
the Scandinavian countries- that have more dynamic economies compared to the EU
countries. MEDIAFAX
Today the World Bank launched the Poverty Assessment Report
for Romania. The report was launched jointly by PM Adrian Nastase and Regional
Director Anand Seth to an audience which included the Senate Speaker, Nicolae
Vacaroiu, the Minister of Labor, Social Solidarity and Family, Elena Dumitru,
CASPIS members, PM's advisor Catalin Zamfir, policy makers, representatives of
the donor community, civil society and academics. The Poverty Assessment Report
was carried out between November 2002 - June 2003, by a team of international
and Romanian experts, working together with the Anti- Poverty and Social
Inclusion Commission - CASPIS - to identify the profile of poverty in Romania.
Many of the report's findings are encouraging: poverty has declined
significantly since 2000 largely due to economic growth, social protection
programs, in particular the Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) which functioned
relatively well to reduce poverty of vulnerable groups like the rural poor. In
spite of these improvements, poverty is still high at 29% of the population in
2002 and severe poverty still characterizes 11% of the population. The report
stresses the strong correlation between economic growth and poverty alleviation.
Projections of this correlation suggest that if Romania maintains an annual
growth rate of 5% in GDP per capita it could further reduce the poverty by half
by 2007. WB OFFICE ROMANIA
Privatization commissions assigned by the President of the Authority for
Privatization (APAPS), Ovidiu Musetescu, are currently holding negotiations for
a swift privatization of seven companies with a combined share capital of over
460 billion lei and over 3,600 employees, APAPS announces. It says that four
companies are included in the PSAL II program, namely SC Umuc SA Bucharest for
which APAPS is in talks with Dual SRL, together with Dual Man SRL and Dual
Telecom SRL Bucharest; SC Energoutilaj SA Bucharest for which negotiations are
being held with Electroaparataj Bucharest; SC Hart Miercurea Ciuc, for which
APAPS has received offers from Dea Alpes Import Export SRL Bucharest, as well as
from individuals Bela Karoly and Ferenczy Karoly; SC Helitube Bucharest for
which talks are being held with Metaltrade International SRL Galati. The other
three companies under negotiations are SC Turnu in Turnu Magurele, for which
negotiations are being held with the two bidders, Universal Holding Belgrade and
Agrofertil, together with EP Commerce and Transvagon of Bulgaria; SC Tremag
Tulcea, the bidder being Compro Spol SRO in Slovakia, as well as SC Agromec SA
Aiud for which negotiations are underway with PAS Agromec Aiud and Godorogea
Anton Marcel. ROMPRES |
RoDI
ISOC
IWA
ARTT
RTS
WQC 2003
ISAQ 2005