Net investments on the rise in Romania

Net investments in the Romanian economy in the first three quarters of last year were significantly larger that those of 2022

Bogdan Matei, 08.01.2024, 13:50

The net investments made in the Romanian economy increased significantly in the first nine months of last year, reaching 118 billion lei (the equivalent of about 23.6 billion euros). It’s 14% more compared to the period January-September 2022 – reveals the data provided, in the first days of this year, by the National Institute of Statistics. Most of the investments belong to the majority private sector, almost 98 billion lei.

According to the NIS, the money invested in new construction works and the purchase of machinery, including means of transport, totalled over 74 billion lei, representing 62% of all investments in the national economy. In the first nine months of last year, the number of building permits decreased, however, by approximately 8,000, to 26,000, mostly issued for rural areas, and the number of completed household units decreased to approximately 50,000, which was 3,000 less compared to the period January-September 2022.

Romania, a construction site, headlines, however, the economic press in Bucharest, which takes a look at the large energy infrastructure or transport works financed by the state, as well as those launched by county councils or local administrations. Regarding the road network, for example, this year, for the first time, there will be three motorways fully under construction, at the same time: Moldova motorway (east), with 13 lots, Bucharest Highway (in fact, a bypass of the Capital), with four lots, and the Bucharest-Nădlac Motorway (west), with three lots, Transport Ministry officials have announced. In addition, works will begin on Unirea Motorway (center) and the first express road built in Romania, Craiova-Pitesti (south), which totals 120 kilometers, will be rendered operational.

The cited sources also state that, currently, execution contracts are concluded for 760 kilometers of high-speed roads, tenders are in progress for another 120 kilometers, and the launch of tenders for more than 750 more is planned. The year 2024 must continue in the same direction, says Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu. The Social Democratic head of the PSD-PNL Government promises that his executive team will continue to meet the milestones of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which will allow Romania to achieve an economic growth of 3.4%, the second highest in the European Union.

This year will be the year of investments, says the prime minister, recalling that a record amount of 120 billion lei was allocated to this sector in the state budget, i.e. more than 7 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The parliamentary opposition, on the other hand, believes that the government is overly optimistic about the Treasury’s ability to collect money for the budget, which will inevitably affect the investment sector as well. (MI)