PM: Romania to exit recession with a six-month delay

Romania will emerge from recession behind most other countries, as the crisis hit with a six-month delay, Prime Minister Emil Boc has said. The recession didn't affect Romania until the end of 2008, while most of the world economies were impacted earlier that year, Boc told a meeting with the Romanian community in New York. "There is a connection: Romania was hit by the crisis six months later, so the recovery will lag behind at least six months compared with the rest of the countries that will have succeeded in overcoming the downturn," Boc said. He said Romania's loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund and the EU has proved vital for the economy during the crisis and it represents a support until the country can manage to stand "on its own feet again." Boc arrived in New York on Wednesday to attend the United Nation's General Assembly Meeting. Mediafax