February 14, 2026

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 14.02.2026, 13:58

Rating. Fitch Ratings on Friday affirmed Romania’s sovereign rating at ‘BBB-‘ with a Negative Outlook, the agency said in a statement. Romania’s BBB- rating is supported by the country’s EU membership and is related to the capital inflows that have supported income convergence and access to external financing. GDP per capita and governance are above other BBB category countries. These strengths are balanced against the large and persistent twin budget and current account deficits, increasing public debt, political polarisation and fairly high net external debt, the statement also reads. Fitch notes that the negative outlook reflects the continued deterioration of public finances due to large, albeit declining, fiscal deficits and rapidly rising government debt/GDP ratio. Household consumption will fall this year due to the prolonged fall in real disposable incomes. Nevertheless, investments will grow strongly, due to EU funds, reinforced by the increased grant component of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, the agency believes. The factors that could lead to rating downgrade are related to failure to implement additional fiscal consolidation measures that would result in public debt stabilisation over the medium term, Fitch says.

Recession. The National Institute of Statistics announced on Friday that Romania’s economy saw a slight growth of 0.6% last year, but ended 2025 in technical recession. Experts say it is a warning signal and that economic recovery will depend on budget discipline, fiscal stability and the state’s ability to support investments. Liberal Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said that the temporary technical recession is part of the inevitable cost of the transition from a model based on deficit and consumption to one supported by investments and budget discipline. He stressed that Romania is not going through a crisis, but a period of economy correction. In contrast, Sorin Grindeanu, the leader of the Social Democratic Party, also in government, said that the technical recession is a shame for the entire coalition and added that it is time for the economic recovery programme to be implemented. President Nicuşor Dan has called for a balanced approach and said the economy had suffered a slight contraction as consumption fell. He emphasised, however, that the country is succeeding in reducing its massive budget deficit without external assistance and avoiding an economic crisis similar to that of 2009-2010.

Port. The Romanian government hails the transaction soon to be finalised by the EBRD for the purchase of the operator of the Giurgiuleşti international port in the Republic of Moldova by Romania. Through this purchase, Romania is making a firm commitment to the long-term development of the Giurgiuleşti port and to strengthening its position in the Black Sea and the Danube region. Significant long-term investments are envisaged to increase the port’s capacity, improve and modernise the infrastructure, and strengthen its strategic importance in the area. The investment will also contribute to the development of maritime capacities and to strengthening the role of the Port of Constanta in the Black Sea region, especially in the current geopolitical context. The transaction provides additional leverage to operators from Romania and the neighbouring Republic of Moldova to support the future reconstruction process of Ukraine. As Moldova’s main port, Giurgiuleşti handles over 70% of imports and exports taking place by waterway, ensuring Moldova’s supply chains for many types of goods.

Security. Under Donald Trump, the United States is ready to move to reinstating a new world order, said Secretary of State Marco Rubio in remarks delivered at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, according to France Presse and Reuters. “We want Europe to be strong. We believe that Europe must survive,” said Rubio, adding that the United States “will always be a child of Europe”. He emphasised that his country is not trying to separate, but to revitalise the transatlantic relationship. On the other hand, Rubio criticised European governments for their migration policies and said the West is destabilised by the impact of large-scale migration. Europe should be taken as an example to follow rather than be criticised, French President Emmanuel Macron said in Munich on Friday. He denounced the image of Europe as an outdated construct, as an over-regulated and apathetic economy and as a society affected by barbaric migration. Speaking in the opening of the summit, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for the restoration of transatlantic trust, damaged by US President Donald Trump. The Munich Security Conference, which will end on Sunday, is set to discuss topics like defence, international security, migration, the crisis in transatlantic relations, the war in Ukraine and the Iranian case. Romania is represented by its Defence and Foreign Ministers Radu Miruta and Oana Toiu, respectively.

Handball. The Romanian women’s handball champion, CSM Bucureşti, are today facing the Hungarian team FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria, away, in the last but one round of the Champions League Group B. In the final round, CSM will play against Ikast (Denmark), on February 21, at home. CSM  are in fourth place in the standings, behind Brest Bretagne (France), FTC-Rail Cargo and Odense Handbold (Denmark). The two best ranked teams will go straight into the quarter-finals, while the other four will play in the play-offs. On Sunday, also in the Champions League, Gloria Bistrita are facing DVSC Schaeffler, from Hungary. Gloria are fourth in Group A. (CM)