Romanian President: 2012 budget must be 'very prudent'

Romania's 2012 budget must be extremely cautious, especially since financing the deficit would be extremely expensive, due to he EU and the regional situation, primarily influenced by Greece, Romanian president Traian Basescu has recently said. Traian Basescu added that the country's deficit target has to be revised due to the financing costs. "The 2012 deficit should be lower than 3 percent. The Government must find solutions to reduce the need for loans,” he said. Moreover, the president promised that pensions and salaries will not be cut in Romania next year. After a meeting with the Prime Minister Emil Boc, Central Bank’s officials and members of the Government, he also said that the official level of the EU funds absorption in Romania is 14.8 percent of the allocated budget. He noted that an important issue in this regard is related to delays in the billing process, asking local authorities to accelerate this process. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com (photo source: Romanian Presidency)