October 7, 2021

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 07.10.2021, 13:55

COVID-19 – The Government has decided to extend the
state of alert for another 30 days starting October 30. Face masks are now
mandatory outside in areas where the incidence rate has exceeded 7 per thousand
inhabitants. Another 14,467 new cases of infection were reported on Thursday,
in addition to 263 related fatalities. 1,556 people are in intensive care. The
authorities and hospital managers are looking for solutions in order to make
more beds available so as to treat the growing number of incoming patients.

ENERGY – On the sidelines of yesterday’s summit
hosted by Slovenia, EU leaders expressed divergent opinions regarding what the
EU’s response should be concerning the scandal revolving around the recent
electricity price hikes. Romania, France, Spain, the Czech Republic and Greece
have called for a joint approach. Germany and the Netherlands, however, claim
the situation is temporary, being linked to the limited number of offers and
the economic fallout of COVID-19. On October 13, Brussels is expected to announce
a set of temporary measures to combat the surge in energy prices. The topic
will also rank on the agenda of the EU Summit of October 21-22, which is
expected to tackle long-term solutions.

CARS – New vehicle registrations went up 4.3% in the first nine
months of the year, compared to the same period in 2020, whereas electric,
hybrid, plug-in and full hybrid cars now have a 12% market share. According to
official data, the number of gas cars is slightly on the rise, accounting for
67% of total cars registered, while Diesel-fuel cars reported a 6.2% drop, with
a total market share of 21%. Hybrid, plug-in and full-hybrid vehicles accounted
for 12% of total cars registered on the market at the end of September 2021,
which is 1.8 times higher compared to September 2020.

NOBEL – The Nobel Prize in Literature will be announced later
today. Last year, the prize went to Louise Glück, for her unmistakable poetic
voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal. In the
past, two people refused the Nobel Prize for Literature. In 1958, the
Russian-born writer Boris Pasternak was forced by the USSR leadership to refuse
the award, while in 1946 the French writer Jean-Paul Sartre refused to accept
the prize. This week, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the Nobel
prizes in physics, medicine and chemistry. The Nobel Peace Prize will be
announced tomorrow.

HANDBALL – The Romanian women’s handball team on Wednesday
defeated the Faeroe Islands 26-19 in preliminary group 2 of the EHF EURO 2022.
Today, Denmark is playing Austria in the same group. Romania will next play
Austria on October 10. The top two teams will qualify to EURO 2022, a
tournament that will be hosted by Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro in
November, 2022.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Irina Begu (61 WTA) has advanced to
the second round at the WTA 1,000 tournament in Indian Wells, California,
totaling over 8 million USD. In the first round, Begu ousted Fiona Ferro of
France (83 WTA), 6-2, 7-6. On the other hand, Gabriela Ruse (92 WTA) was
knocked out in the first round by Alizé Cornet of France, 6-3, 7-6. Another two
players will represent Romania in the main draw – Simona Halep and Sorana
Cîrstea, who will both compete in the second round. Seeded 11th,
Halep will go up against Marta Kostiuk of Ukraine, while Cîrstea, seeded 32nd,
will play Misaki Doi of Japan. (VP)