December 19, 2024
A roundup of domestic and world news
Newsroom, 19.12.2024, 13:55
Coalition – This is not the time for petty arguments, and every leader must see himself as a statesman and negotiate in order to have a government that should propose a budget and organize the presidential election as soon as possible next year, said the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis. He announced that he would convene consultations with the political parties. Iohannis’s statement comes after the announcement of the Romanian Prime Minister and social-democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu that the PSD is withdrawing from the talks regarding the formation of the government and will vote for a right-wing minority government in Parliament. Prior to this announcement, the USR had set conditions to remain in the coalition formula which the discussion partners considered exaggerated. After the cancellation of the presidential election, the pro-European parties that entered parliament following the December 1 elections, PSD, PNL, USR and UDMR, began negotiations for the formation of a broad coalition government.
Stock exchange – The Bucharest Stock Exchange registered decreases of almost 3% on almost all indices in Thursday’s meeting, at noon, and recorded transactions worth 2.63 billion lei (around 530 million Euros). The main BET index, which shows the evolution of the 16 most liquid companies, registered a decrease of 2.75%, up to 16,300.37 points, and the BET-Plus index, which shows the evolution of the 37 most liquid shares from the Bucharest Stock Exchange, was down by 2.68%.
European Council – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is participating, today, in the meeting of the European Council, which is taking place in Brussels. According to the Presidential Administration in Bucharest, the agenda of talks includes topics such as: Ukraine, migration, the situation in the Middle East, the EU’s preparation in the civil and military fields and the response to crises, the EU enlargement, the Republic of Moldova, Georgia and issues related to freedom, security and justice. The European leaders’ discussion regarding Ukraine aims at analyzing the situation on the ground and the most appropriate ways to comply with the support commitments to the Ukrainian people and to continue the efforts necessary to reject the Russian invasion and ensure the prevalence of international law. The Romanian President will also inform the members of the European Council about the situation in Romania as a result of foreign interference in the electoral process. ‘I will emphasize that this is not a threat only to Romania, but to European democracies and values, in the most general way. Effective coordination at the level of the entire Union is necessary on the topic of combating foreign interference and hybrid attacks from Russia,’ said President Iohannis.
Football – The main shareholder of the football club Rapid Bucharest, one of the most popular in Romania, the businessman Dan Şucu, became the majority shareholder of the Italian club Genoa, the Serie A group announced on its official website. The source points out that, following a capital increase to 45,356,262 Euros, of which 5,356,262 Euros are free and another 40,000,000 paid on December 14, the Board of Directors approved the Romanian investor’s offer. He subscribed to the entire capital increase, obtaining, in return, a share in the share capital of about 77% of Genoa CFC and leaving the previous shareholders as a minority – the release also states. President of the Concordia Employers’ Confederation, Şucu (61 years old) is a prominent figure in the Romanian economy. He is the founder of Mobexpert, the largest furniture brand in Romania, with over 2,200 employees. He is also involved in the real estate sector and in the media, with a key role in the business daily “Ziarul Financiar”. Genoa is ranked 13thin Serie A after 16 matches, with 16 points.
Fitch – The Fitch rating agency has worsened Romania’s outlook from “stable” to “negative” regarding the raring for long-term loans in foreign currency. Among the reasons cited, Fitch mentions political risk factors, including “eroded political credibility” and political uncertainty, as well as fiscal slippages and unsustainable spending. An important factor that has been taken into account is the large budget deficit. Among the causes, Fitch lists public sector wage spending and “unfunded pension increases ahead of the election”. In addition, the new Romanian Parliament is more divided and there is an increase in the share of extreme right anti-European parties, which reflects the rising polarization of Romanian society. On the other hand, a plus for Romania is, according to Fitch, the solid banking sector. Among the factors that can lead to a positive rating, the agency mentions the higher than projected fiscal consolidation, which supports the stabilization of the public debt (GDP) in the medium term and the reduction of external indebtedness and external financing risks. (LS)
