July 22, 2020 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 22.07.2020, 20:00

Coronavirus Romania. Romania reports a record 1,030 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours and 27 new deaths. The number of confirmed cases thus hits 40,100, while the death toll rises to 2,101. Almost 25,000 people have recovered. A law regulating the conditions for quarantine and isolation came into force on Tuesday, which, according to the health minister Nelu Tataru, lays down the instruments required in order to reduce the number of new cases. The minister warned however that the next two weeks will be difficult, with lots of active cases. As of Wednesday, the village of Cartojani in Giurgiu County in the south is under lockdown, after reporting 32 infections through community spread for a total population of 3,600. Local authorities say epidemiological risks are extremely severe, given that current protection measures are not observed. Another village in Prahova County, also in the south, is under a 2-week lockdown as well, while similar measures are being considered in several localities in Arges County.

Coronavirus world. Global coronavirus infections near 15.1 million, while the death toll nears 620,000. In his coronavirus press briefing, which he resumed after many weeks of interruption, US president Donald Trump told Americans that the pandemic may get worse before it gets better and urged them to wear face coverings where they cannot maintain physical distance, something he had previously opposed. The US saw more than 600,000 new cases for the 8th day in a row. On Tuesday, the World Health Organisation said it would bring together scientists and experts from various fields as part of a project to combat disinformation, a relatively new threat to public health. In another move, a number of British researchers told the British Parliament that people would have to live with the pandemic for many years, believing it is unlikely for a possible vaccine to eliminate this coronavirus definitively.

Industry President Klaus Iohannis and a governmental team headed by PM Ludovic Orban Wednesday discussed
means to correlate the 2 national plans through which Romania will have access to
nearly 80 billion euro under the European Union’s post-coronavirus economic
recovery plan. Some of the money may be accessed this year, if the related national plan
is prepared quickly, as the Cabinet intends, the President explained. Also on Wednesday, but in Craiova, in the south, Iohannis said that the automotive industry is vital for Romania and it
still has a lot of growth potential. He visited the Ford production unit in
Craiova, southern Romania, which has resumed its 3-shift working hours, and has
a production volume comparable to the one before the pandemic. The management
announced having initiated additional investments of 30 million USD for parts
and components. The American carmaker has already invested over 1.5 billion
euro in the plant in Craiova, which employs nearly 6,000 people. Another major
carmaker operating in Romania is the French company Renault, producing the
Dacia brand in Pitesti, in the south of the country, and employing over 17,700 workers.

Deficit. Government deficit grew both in the eurozone and in the European Union in the first quarter of the year compared with the previous quarter, because of the lockdown to contain the spread of the pandemic, according to the latest figures published by Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office. In the eurozone, the government deficit grew from 0.7% of GDP in the last quarter of last year to 2.2% in the first quarter of this year. Malta, with 8.5%, Romania, with 7.2%, and Belgium, with 6%, have the highest deficit levels in the European Union.

Judiciary. The Romanian senators rejected a bill to dismantle the special department to investigate offences in the judiciary. The Save Romania Union, the party that initiated the bill, said the department is criticised by magistrates, European institutions and various organisations in the field, while the Social Democratic Party said it guarantees the independence of the judiciary. The Chamber of Deputies has already rejected the bill, but the Senate was the decision-making body in this case.

(translated by: CM, Ana-Maria Popescu)