Romania's Govt. holds first informal consultations with investors

Romanian prime minister Ludovic Orban had a discussion behind closed doors on Tuesday, April 7, with representatives of the Coalition for Romania’s Development (CDR), an organization that brings together the most important business associations in Romania, most of which represent large multinational corporations.

The budget was high on the agenda, since the Government is preparing to operate the first budget revision - in fact, redo the budget planning for the year, after the coronavirus pandemic has hit the country.

Even some large companies, which hold enough cash, prefer taking advantage of the facility allowed by the Government and defer their payments to the budget as long as the outlook for economic recovery looks uncertain, according to sources familiar to the discussions, quoted by Ziarul Financiar daily. However, the CDR members are discussing the option of making the necessary payments to the budget on time.

As regards the Government’s own resources (not including the disbursements from the European Union), prime minister Ludovic Orban implied that they are rather limited. Romania can count only on EUR 1 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), because the country has been running chronic wide current account deficits, PM Orban reportedly explained to the CDR representatives.

On the other hand, the public expenditures are going to be high as the funds disbursed for technical unemployment are estimated at RON 8 billion (EUR 1.66 bln) so far. The unemployment rate will remain high in the medium term, as 0.8-1.0 million workers who have returned from abroad will join another 0.8-1.0 mln workers who have lost their jobs at home, the daily reads quoting the conclusions of the consultations held at the Government’s headquarters.

(Photo source: Gov.ro)