Press Review - November 26, 2015

11.26.2015 By Gabriela Stan

Romania Posts Budget Surplus Of 1.28% Of GDP In January-October

Romania's consolidated budget posted a surplus of RON9.04 billion, or 1.28% of the gross domestic product, in January-October, from a surplus of RON1.9 billion (0.29%)  in the same period last year, finance ministry data showed.

Revenues to the consolidated budget amounted to RON191.6 billion in January-October, 7.9% higher in nominal terms compared with the same period in 2014.

 Income tax collection grew 13.3%, profit tax collection grew 11.2%, and excise duty collection grew 7.4% on the year in the first ten months.

Revenue from the value-added tax grew 11.8%. Romania cut its value-added tax on food products as of June to 9% from 24%. (Adevarul)

 

Traian Basescu Says He Would Be “An Excellent” PM, Better Than Dacian Ciolos

Former President Traian Basescu stated he would be “an excellent” Prime Minister, better than Dacian Ciolos, and that there is no politician better than him as PM.

"I would be an excellent PM. (…) I would no longer cut wages and pensions unless forced by a crisis situation. (...) The first thing to do in crisis situations (...) is to save your country. If you save your country, you also save your people," Basescu told Romania TV.

The former President added that the wage cut measures triggered very high political costs for him.(Puterea)

                                                   

Privatization Success Rate In Romania Between 1990-2014 Was Below 25%

In the last 25 years, the success rate of privatizations in Romania was below 25%, while the country sold 7,726 state-owned companies and lost over 2 million jobs, according to Cristina Chiriac, head of National Association of Entrepreneurs.

"In 1989, there was no private sector in Romania. Several programs started in 1990, and the main stipulation of the programs in the last 25 years was privatization. In this period, 7,726 companies were privatized, and the success rate is lower than 25%. In other words, less than 25% of the privatized companies are still alive. The social effect of this phenomenon is the loss of 2 million jobs," Chiriac stated, during a conference on the impact of the Tax Code over the SMEs. (Puterea)

 

European Parliament Adopts EU Budget For 2016

 The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted the EU budget for 2016, setting maximum amount of funding possible for migration and refugees, small and medium sized enterprises, students, and the EU research program Horizon2020.

The European Parliament adopted the budget with 516 votes to 179 and 8 abstentions, setting commitment appropriations at EUR155 billion and payments at EUR143.9 billion.

The Parliament also asked member states to assign additional funds to the Africa Trust Fund (to deal with the root causes of migration) and the Syria Trust Fund (helping refugees and migrants in and near Syria). (Romania Libera)

 

Almost Half Of 45-year-olds To Develop Prediabetes - Study

Almost half of people aged 45 will develop prediabetes, an elevated blood sugar level that often precedes diabetes, according to an extensive study conducted by Dutch researchers, Reuters reports.

Prediabetes, also called “impaired glucose metabolism”, has no clear symptoms, but people with higher than normal blood sugar should be tested for diabetes every one or two years, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Researchers from Erasmus University in Rotterdam and Harvard School of Public Health in Boston used the data of 10,000 adults in Netherlands for the study, including medical records, pharmacy data and blood sugar measurements. (Romania Libera)