October 1, 2017
Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 01.10.2017, 14:05
TALKS Romanian president Klaus Iohannis will be having talks on Monday with his Croatian counterpart Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, who is paying a 3-days visit to Romania. According to the presidential administration in Bucharest, the two officials will be focusing on ways of boosting bilateral relations as well as on major issues on the European and regional agenda. On Tuesday the two officials are expected to open the forum of the Romanian-Croatian business people. Also on Tuesday president Kitarovic will be meeting students and professors of the Bucharest University for talks on Croatia’s contribution to strengthening the European space.
AWARD Romanian actor Bogdan Dumitrache last night received the ‘Silver Shell’ award for best actor at the international Film Festival in San Sebastian (Spain). It is the first award for the Romanian cinematography at this festival whose jury was led by famous American actor John Malkovich. The Romanian actor has described the part he played in Constantin Popescu’s film Pororoca, as his best so far. Dumitrache, 40, has also been awarded the Gopo prize for his part in Popescu’s film ‘The Portrait of the Fighter as a Young Man’ and the ‘Golden Leopard’ at the Festival in Lucarno, Switzerland, in 2011 for his role in Adrian Sitaru’s ‘Best Intentions’.
PRICE HIKES As of today the Romanians will be paying higher prices for electricity and fuel, while next week will see higher prices in gas deliveries. Electricity is to rise on an average by 0.75 euro per hundred of kilowatts whereas prices for household gas will be 6% higher. The fuel excise will also rise by 0.034 euro per liter; a measure experts believe will trigger more price hikes in services and food products.
REFERENDUM The Spanish province of Catalonia is today seeing a referendum on the independence of this region. The referendum has been declared illegal by Madrid and the Spanish government has taken measures to prevent it from taking place with police seizing voting papers and ballot boxes. 38 people have been reported wounded following the police intervention to block the referendum. Carles Puigdemont, the head of the Catalan executive, has denounced the police’s brutal intervention allegedly firing rubber bullets at the pro-independence protesters in Catalonia. Several Spanish cities saw rallies pro and against the referendum on Friday and Saturday.
TENNIS Romanian tennis player Monica Niculescu today takes on sixth-seeded British challenger Johanna Konta in the first round of the WTA Premier Mandatory in Beijing with total prizes of 6.4 million dollars. The world’s second best player Simona Halep on Saturday qualified for the tournament’s second round where she will be playing the 28th seeded Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia. Also in the same competition on Saturday, Sorana Cirstea also from Romania, qualified for the second round after a win against German Mona Barthel.
