July 7, 2024

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 07.07.2024, 13:51

Citizenship. Romanian nationals living in Spain will be able to obtain dual citizenship by the end of the year, said the Romanian prime minister Marcel Ciolacu after talks with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sánchez in Bucharest on Saturday. Ciolacu said the document was at the ministry of justice in Madrid and gave assurances that the over 1 million Romanians living in Spain will be able to benefit from this facility by the end of the year. If the dual citizenship agreement is adopted, Romania will become the third state in Europe, after France and Portugal, to close such an agreement with the Spanish state. Ciolacu said that, also by the end of the year, Romanian citizens will no longer need visas to travel to the US and voiced hope that Romania would fully join Schengen. Ciolacu conveyed to the Spanish prime minister the intention of the Romanian side to host a joint meeting of the two governments to discuss the agreement on the creation of bilingual Romanian-Spanish sections, the holding of a bilingual baccalaureate exam in Romanian high schools, cooperation in the area of defence and combating human trafficking. Last but not least, the Spanish side said it supported Romania in its endeavours to obtain a representative portfolio in the future European Commission.

Festivals. The Neversea and Saga music festivals are coming to an end today, having attracted thousands of young people to the Black Sea coast and the capital Bucharest. Drug-fighting agents carried out a number of prevention activities, both ahead and during the events. On the first day of the Neversea festival, two persons were detained on drug-related charges and 37 fines were levied, worth 2,500 euros. The Saga festival is today featuring acts like Nicki Minaj and Armin Van Buuren. The Neversea electronic music festival is Europe’s biggest music event to take place on a beach, and according to organisers, the British publication DJ Magazine ranked it 23^rd in the world. Almost 280,000 people attended last year’s edition, which took place between 6^th and 9^th July.

Drugs. The prosecutors of the body fighting organised crime and terrorism in Romania have detained a Romanian citizen residing in the US on suspicion of trafficking in high risk drugs. According to investigations, he offered banned substances in the form of jellies containing THC at an event held on 29^th June that was also attended by minors. A 3-year-old girl who ate a jelly was later taken to hospital for complex medical tests. A large amount of cannabis was found when the suspect’s home was searched and inquiries indicate that the drugs were about to be sold at the Neversea music festival in Constanţa. According to prosecutors, the person has been detained and will appear in front of a judge to decide whether it can be held under arrest for a period of 30 days.

Stock exchange. The Bucharest Stock Exchange earned over 1.44 billion euros worth of capitalisation this week. The total capitalisation exceeded almost 70 billion euros, with the Bucharest Stock Exchange enjoying a very good year. In the first 6 months of the year, the BET index, which shows the dynamics of the 20 most traded stocks, saw a growth of 18.7%. Also, the BET-TR index, which reflects both the evolution of the price of listed companies and their dividends, saw an increase of 25.2%. The Bucharest Stock Exchange says that since the start of the year, its main indicators reached all-time highs amid a growth trend on international markets. Last year, the capitalisation of the Bucharest Stock Exchange grew by almost 50% compared with 2022.

Elections. The 28,000 voters in Costineşti, a resort on the Black Sea coast, are again expected at the ballots today to elect their mayor. The Central Electoral Bureau cancelled the elections held on 9^th June and decided they should be rerun as it noted contradictory results after several recounts, as well as flaws in the voting process. The incumbent Social Democrat mayor was initially the winner by one vote compared with his Liberal rival. After a recount, the Liberal candidate was ahead, but the decision was challenged by the Social Democrat candidate. Another recount showed the two tied. The Social Democrats and the Liberals are partners in the ruling coalition, but they had different candidates in the local elections in most cities and localities.