April 15, 2023 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 15.04.2023, 19:10
Easter. Orthodox Christians, the majority in Romania, and Greek Catholics, celebrate, on Sunday, Easter or the Resurrection of Jesus, the biggest celebration of Christianity. Easter takes its name from the Hebrew word “Pesah” of the ancient Jews, which means “passing”. First, the word designated the bringing of the world by God from non-being into being, and then, the passing of the Israeli people from Egyptian slavery to full freedom. “Let the Easter holiday inspire us, let us be with a good thought and a gesture of solidarity closer to our fellow people in suffering, hit by war or misfortunes, affected by the loss of loved ones or the burden of loneliness” – president Klaus Iohannis said in a message conveyed on this occasion. He wished health, peace and prosperity to all Orthodox, Greek-Catholic, Armenian and Neo-Protestant Romanians in the country and abroad. In turn, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel, made an appeal to peace, joy and good thoughts and deeds for the sick, the poor, the lonely or the estranged.
Safety. In Romania, more than 24,000 policemen, gendarmes and firefighters are ensuring order and safety measures during the free days of the Easter holidays. During this period, high traffic is expected on the roads, as well as approximately 800,000 believers attending the religious services. Every day, over 2,700 gendarmes will be present at all the religious and cultural-artistic events taking place during this period, so that crowding or other incidents are avoided.
Art. On World Art Day, celebrated on April 15, the Romanian Minister of Culture, Lucian Romaşcanu, stated that art remains an expression of freedom and urged people to honor artists and enjoy their creations. “This year, World Art Day takes place on Holy Saturday, an extremely important day for the Orthodox believers who await the Resurrection of the Lord, another occasion in which we take care to feed our souls”, said the Minister of Culture, Lucian Romaşcanu. World Art Day was established by the International Art Association at its 17th General Assembly in Guadalajara, Mexico. Celebrated for the first time in 2012, the date was symbolically chosen to honor the memory of sculptor, painter, architect and inventor Leonardo da Vinci, born on April 15, 571 years ago.
Visit. Between April 18-26, Romanias president Klaus Iohannis, will pay formal visits to Brazil, Chile and Argentina. According to the Presidential Administration, these visits are aimed at relaunching high-level dialogue with Latin American states and boosting bilateral interactions at the political-diplomatic level. They are intended to open up new opportunities for collaboration in areas of increased interest, including those regarding the common response to a series of challenges at global level. One of the main goals of these visits is the promotion of sectoral contacts and the development of concrete bilateral projects in the fields of economy, trade, research, environmental protection and climate change, agriculture, education, culture, civil protection.
IMF. The European economy has done reasonably well in recent weeks, but growth is now slowing and faces multiple risks, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned. The inflation rate remains at a high level and exceeds 10% in most countries in emerging Europe and in some advanced economies. According to the institution, a drop in inflation is expected following the drop in energy prices and the improvement of the situation in the supply chains, even if household expenses continue to go up. The IMF expects an average inflation rate of around 5.6% this year in advanced European economies, and 11.7% in emerging Europe. According to estimates, in Romania the annual inflation rate will probably accelerate its decrease in the next period. The Central Bank specified that the annual inflation rate decreased to 15.52% in February, from 16.37% in December 2022, which is relatively in line with forecasts.
Rating. Fitch Ratings confirmed on Friday, the BBB minus ratings for the long-term debt in foreign currency and local currency of the municipality of Bucharest and improved the outlook from negative to stable. Last month, Fitch reconfirmed Romanias government debt rating at BBB-/F3 for long- and short-term foreign currency debt and revised the countrys outlook from negative to stable. Fitch also revised the individual credit profile of the Romanian capital from BBB plus to A, reflecting the revision of the risk profile from low medium level to medium level, the solid operational performance and the ambitious investment plan . Bucharest is responsible for more than 30% of the countrys economy, and the local level of wealth is more than four times higher than the national average, the release states. The citys capital expenditures are expected to remain high during 2023-2025, leading to an average deficit of 3% of total revenues, Fitch estimates. (MI)
