August 18, 2025 UPDATE

The latest news from RRI

Newsroom, 18.08.2025, 20:00

Pensions – “The draft law on the reform of the magistrates’ pensions is in line with European norms, but it also takes into account aspects of social equity, normality and efficiency, as well as budgetary realities and the need to reduce the state’s operating expenses,” the Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said on Monday. He discussed with representatives of the magistrates’ associations the issue of pensions reform in the system, a component of the second package of measures to reduce the budget deficit. According to a government statement, the prime minister said that raising the retirement age for this professional category will generate both an increase in the quality of the public service and the sustainability of the justice system, and in order not to create problems, the new reform will be applied in stages. Regarding the change in the method of calculating pensions, which displeases magistrates, Ilie Bolojan specified that the measure is in line with the government’s policy of reducing public spending. Also on Monday, the prime minister also discussed with representatives of the Association of Romanian Municipalities, dissatisfied with the Emergency Ordinance that provides for the suspension of funding through the “Anghel Saligny” program and the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), for projects that have a low degree of completion or have not yet been started. They say that the suspension of these projects will affect the development of local communities from an economic and educational point of view. “Investments from the PNRR will continue in a planned manner, so as to ensure that projects that will be completed by the end of August 2026 will receive financing, as Romania has committed to in the dialogue with representatives of the European Commission”, Ilie Bolojan stated.

Visit – The Romanian Foreign Minister, Oana Ţoiu, stated on the public television that a visit by President Nicuşor Dan to the United States and a meeting with Donald Trump will most likely take place in the first quarter of 2026. The minister will be in Chicago on September 20, with her agenda having three main objectives: participating in the United Nations General Assembly, meeting with Romanian communities in both New York and Chicago, and preparing the visit between President Nicuşor Dan and President Donald Trump. On the other hand, Oana Ţoiu discussed on Monday with the Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Policy, in the context of negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine. She announced that a virtual meeting of the leaders of the European Council is scheduled for Tuesday. “For Romania, ensuring a long-lasting peace, and not just an indefinite pause in the war, as well as the implications for the Black Sea are essential in this process. We support a strong, common voice of the Coalition of the Willing,” the head of Romanian diplomacy stated on a social network.

Tennis – The Romanian tennis player Sorana Cîrstea (138 WTA) defeated the Japanese Moyuka Uchijima (89 WTA) in the first round of the WTA 250 tournament in Cleveland (Ohio) on Monday, a first-time match, score 6-4, 6-1. Sorana Cîrstea managed to reach the main singles draw of the tournament in Cleveland (Ohio), with total prizes worth 275,000 dollars, on Sunday, after defeating the Swiss Rebeka Masarova (105 WTA), score 6-2, 6-2, in the last round of the qualifications. Also on Monday, in Cleveland, Romanian Gabriela Ruse lost in the first round to the American Hailey Baptiste, eighth seed, with the score 6-2, 7-6 (7/2).

Economy – Financial analysts’ expectations for economic growth in 2025 stand at an average of 0.8%, with some participants also expressing concerns about a possible recession in the Romanian economy, according to the monthly survey conducted by the CFA Romania Association (the organization of investment professionals in Romania). The state budget deficit forecast for 2025 has increased slightly compared to the previous year, to an average of 7.6% of the GDP, and the public debt calculated as a percentage of the GDP is expected to increase to 59% in the next 12 months, the organization said. The expected inflation rate for a one-year period (until August 2026) has increased compared to the value recorded in the previous month and reached 6.46%, while over 56% of the participants anticipate an increase in the inflation rate in the next 12 months.

Statistics – The number of new businesses established in the European Union increased by 4.6% in the second quarter, as compared to the first quarter, and the increase recorded in Romania is well above the EU average, show data published on Monday by Eurostat. According to the statistics, among the EU member states, the largest increases in the establishment of new businesses were recorded in the Netherlands, Spain and Romania (19%), in all sectors of the economy, except for industry, where there was no change. The largest increase was recorded in the transport, information and communications and financial services sectors, Eurostat also announced. At the opposite pole, the largest decreases in the establishment of new businesses were recorded in Denmark, Cyprus and Germany. (LS)