January 16, 2024
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 16.01.2024, 13:55
Farmers. The situation of farmers in the European Union, including those
in Romania, is the subject of a debate in the European Parliament. The subject
was added on the agenda at the proposal of the vice-chair of the Committee on
Agriculture, the MEP Daniel Buda. He argued that European funds must be channelled
to the Union’s farmers so that they can cope with challenges such as draught,
inflation, floods and the war in Ukraine. In Bucharest, prime minister Marcel
Ciolacu said the demands of farmers, who have been staging protests for almost
a week, alongside road carriers, are 99% solved. After talks, the government
agreed with the emergency payment of subsidies, awarding compensations for the
losses suffered by Romanian farmers because of imports from Ukraine, granting
loans with subsidised interest rates and updating the amount of state air for
the excise duty on fuel used in agriculture. Road carriers are demanding a cap
on obligatory insurance policies beyond 31st March, preventing
double taxation and measures to ease traffic through the customs. Family
doctors have also staged protests, unhappy with the sums proposed by the
authorities to reimburse medical services.
Cars. The five best-selling car
models in Romania last year were all Dacia models, a company statement says.
The Romanian manufacturer registered over 46,000 cars on the local market, up
almost 15% compared with the previous year. The most popular model is Logan, followed
by Duster and Sandero, while Dacia Spring was the most popular electric car in
Romania in 2023, with a market share of over 43%. After the five Dacia models,
the top of best-selling cars in Romania included Renault, Toyota,
Volkswagen, Skoda and Ford. First established in 1966, Dacia is the biggest car
manufacturer in Romania, leading the local car market and Romania’s biggest
exporter, with a significant contribution to the country’s GDP. Part of the
Renault Group since 1999, Dacia is marketed in 44 countries across four
continents.
US. The former White House leader
Donald Trump won the Iowa caucus, as part of his bid to become the Republican
nominee for this year’s presidential elections in the United States. If elected
candidate, Trump would face Joe Biden, who defeated him four years ago.
Culture day. Romania celebrated
National Culture Day on 15th January, to mark 174 years since the
birth of poet Mihai Eminescu. Events were staged around the country, with
entrance was free to the museums subordinated to the culture ministry. The
Romanian Academy and the Science Academy of the Republic of Moldova held a
joint session in hybrid format. National Culture Day was also celebrated in the
village in Botoşani where Mihai
Eminescu spent his childhood, Ipoteşti, where writers, cultural figures,
students and teachers paid a tribute to the poet. National Culture Day was also
celebrated abroad, with the Romanian Cultural Institute staging dozens of
events, including concerts, exhibitions, theatre and ballet performances and
poetry recitals.
Tennis. The doubles pair made of Romania’s
Ana Bogdan and Spain’s Rebeka Masarova today qualified for the second round of
the Australian Open, defeating the Norwegian-US pair Ulrikke Eikeri and Catherine
Harrison. Also today, another Romanian player, the 22nd seed Sorana
Cîrstea lost to China’s Yafan Wang, in the first round of the Australian Open. Cîrstea
will also play in the doubles, alongside Croatia’s Donna Vekic, while Monica
Niculescu will pair up with Brazil’s Ingrid Martins. All three Romanian players
on the singles main draw in Melbourne, Ana Bogdan, Jaqueline Cristian and
Sorana Cîrstea, lost in the first round. (CM)
