May 20, 2025
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 20.05.2025, 13:55
Inflation. The National Bank of Romania has revised its inflation forecast for the end of 2025 upwards, to 4.6%, from 3.8% previously, and expects it to reach 3.4% at the end of 2026, compared to 3.1% in its previous forecast, according to data presented on Tuesday by the bank’s governor, Mugur Isărescu. The latter said the Central Bank will work with the new government to find the best solutions to bring down inflation, based on a sustainable and gradual reduction of the public deficit and without economic recession. According to data published by Eurostat, the European Statistical Office, the annual inflation rate in the European Union has continued to drop in April to 2.4% from 2.5% in March, but Romania still has the highest inflation rate, with 4.9%. Romania’s National Institute of Statistics said the highest price increases were recorded in April in the services sector, with almost 7%.
Resignation. Former Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has resigned as president of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the main party in the ruling coalition in Romania. He made the decision at a meeting of the party’s National Political Council to discuss the situation after the presidential elections and the steps to be taken next. Two options are being analysed, namely remaining in government alongside pro-European forces or entering the opposition. At the presidential elections of November 2024, which were later cancelled by the Constitutional Court, Marcel Ciolacu failed to get past the first round, while in the repeat elections earlier this month, Crin Antonescu, the representative of the governing coalition, also failed to qualify for the presidential runoff.
Elections. The Central Electoral Bureau is expected to submit to the Constitutional Court the results of the second round of Sunday’s presidential elections for the Constitutional Court to validate them on Thursday. President elect Nicuşor Dan will most likely be sworn in before Parliament next Monday.
Romania-Israel. The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies are today holding a solemn session to mark the Day of Friendship and Solidarity between Romania and Israel. According to the president of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania, the deputy Silviu Vexler, this is an excellent opportunity to reiterate and further develop the strong friendship between the two countries. The 77 years of uninterrupted diplomatic relations demonstrate the solidity of the Romanian-Israeli friendship and pave the way for even closer cooperation in the future, notes a memorandum approved on 12th May by the joint permanent bureaus of the two chambers.
Law. Romania’s interim president Ilie Bolojan has signed into law a bill on the use of air space. The law establishes the authorities and institutions in charge of taking measures to counteract aircraft, unmanned aerial systems and other aerial vehicles surveying Romania illegally. Experts say the new legislation will boost aviation security and safety.
EU funding. The European Parliament is today expected to approve a report in which Romania requested the European Commission to grant it a 18-month extension of the period of implementation of a number of projects included in its National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Romania also requests help with the transition to other European funding sources. The information was made public by the deputy speaker of the European Parliament, the Social Democrat MEP Victor Negrescu. He says these measures are an essential step for Bucharest not to lose European funding. The extension requested by Romania refers to projects that are already under way and which require significant investments and reforms and must be approved by all EU member states.
Education. Romania needs to build a knowledge-based society, in order to boost life expectancy and prosperity, said the interim Minister of Education, Daniel David. He warned that functional illiteracy is now much higher among children than among adults, and that in order to combat this phenomenon, the education system requires radical reform.
Embassy. The US ambassador to Romania Kathleen Kavalec will retire from this position, the US embassy says. In a Facebook post, the latter said that until a new ambassador is appointed, Ms Kavalec will be replaced by the deputy chief of mission, Michael Dickerson. Owing to his extensive experience in the region, Michael Dickerson, who is a career diplomat, is expected to continue to advance the strong ties between Romania and the United States, the US embassy in Bucharest also said. (CM)
