July 1, 2024 UPDATE
A roundup of the main local and world news
Newsroom, 01.07.2024, 20:25
TALKS Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu on Monday held talks with political parties on the presidential election schedule. The Save Romania Union, a.k.a USR, stood for holding these election in November, the term set by the law. The Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) has voiced its readiness for the election in mid-September, as the head of the Executive repeatedly announced. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania (UDMR) wants these election in October, whereas SOS Romania chose the month of November. The latest government talks on the election schedule come against the disputes within the ruling PSD-PNL coalition. In another round of talks, concurrently with the government talks, the PNL leadership unanimously voted in favour of the month of November for the presidential election. We recall that this year, besides the presidential election, legislative elections are to take place in Romania in December .
OSCE Bucharest is hosting the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, whose general theme is “The Role of the OSCE in the Current Security Architecture: A Parliamentary Perspective”. The 31st meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly is an event of a major geopolitical importance, according to the head of the Romanian Parliament’s delegation to the OSCE, Dan Barna. He added that Romania’s hosting it shows the recognition of its role in the regional context of the war in Ukraine and the European security developments for the OSCE countries. The war waged by Russia against Ukraine is one of the main topics on the agenda of the meeting, Barna also said. The over 250 MPs gathering in Bucharest these days will also discuss economic development, women’s and men’s equal involvement in political life and the involvement of young people in the decision-making process.
PRICES Excise duties on fuel again went up in Romania from 1st July, with the price of one litre of petrol expected to go up by around 0.43 euros, while that of diesel oil by around 0.4 euros. Gas prices will also see some changes, with the regulatory body approving an increase of 19% on average in supply prices. The minimum wage goes up to 3,700 lei from 3,300, also from 1st July.
POLL 74% of Romanians see inflation as the main reason why they will spend more in the next six months, according to a survey published by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Most respondents believe they will be spending more on food, clothing, DIY products and travel. 46% and 39% respectively say discounts, followed by promotional offers are the main reasons why people change brands. The purchasing decision is influenced especially by the ads on social networks, in the opinion of more than 70% of respondents, which is similar to worldwide trends. Facebook remains the most popular social media app in Romania, while younger users prefer Instagram and TikTok. 36% of Romanian consumers buy their products from physical shops, while 29% buy online on their PCs and 31% from their phones. The Voice of Consumer 2024 survey was conducted using a sample of 20,662 consumers from 31 countries and territories, including Romania.
(bill)
