July 28, 2021 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 28.07.2021, 20:00

HEAT WAVE Meteorologists have issued a code orange alert against extreme heat and thermal discomfort in seven counties in the south and the capital Bucharest, in place until Saturday. Maximum temperatures are expected to reach 40 degrees Centigrade locally. A code yellow alert against extreme heat is in place until Saturday for all other regions, with highs ranging from 34 to 39 degrees. Passenger and freight trains will travel at reduced speeds during this period. Road traffic authorities have also warned some
restrictions will be introduced due to the extreme heat, on Thursday, Friday
and Saturday, between noon and 8 pm in most of the country.

COVID-19 The number of COVID-19 infections in Romania remains low, although it has gone up in recent days. The authorities announced 159 new cases on Wednesday, one new COVID-related casualty and 47 patients in intensive care. According to the head of the vaccination campaign, medical doctor Valeriu Gheorghiţă, nearly 90% of the people currently diagnosed with COVID-19 are not vaccinated, while over 91% of related fatalities were people who hadn’t taken the anti-COVID jab. At present, some 30% of Romania’s total population is immunised. Starting August 2, young people aged 12-17 can also receive the Moderna vaccine, Valeriu Gheorghiţă said. The Romanian official went on to say that, by mid-September, Romania might start administering the third dose of the vaccine for at-risk categories, such as health workers, chronically ill and people over 65 years of age. So far, 4.8 million people have been fully vaccinated in Romania.

GOVERNMENT The Government Wednesday approved plans to further ease COVID-related restrictions starting August 1. PM Florin Cîţu mentioned, among others, that outdoors cultural and entertainment events may be attended by a maximum of 75,000 people, in places where the COVID-19 infection rate is under 2 per thousand, on condition that participants are vaccinated, recovered from the disease or have tested negative for it. For indoor and outdoor sports events, crowd attendance is limited to 75% of the venue’s full capacity, provided a physical distance of at least 1 m between viewers is ensured. In areas with an infection rate below 2 per thousand, bars, nightclubs, restaurants and gambling venues will also be open between 5 am and 2 am.

IMF The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday maintained its 6% economic growth estimate for the world economy this year and upgraded its outlook on the United States and other developed economies, while downgrading its forecast for a number of developing countries affected by the fallout of COVID-19. In the case of Romania, in October last year the IMF estimated a growth rate of 4.6% this year. The new outlook expects Romanias economic growth rate to reach 6% this year. Additionally, the IMF has upgraded its forecast for 2022, from 3.9% as originally estimated, to 4.8%. According to the new report, Romania’s economic growth rates for 2021 and 2022 will stand above the European average.

INFRINGEMENT The European Commission decided to start infringement procedures against 12 Member States, including Romania, for failure to transpose EU rules banning unfair trade practices in the agricultural and food supply chain. The deadline for transposing the regulations into national law was May 1, 2021. The Commission sent letters of formal notice to Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Spain, requesting them to adopt and notify relevant measures. The Member States have now two months to reply.

BEAR CENSUS A bear census worth 11 million euro was launched on Wednesday in Romania. The Minister for Investments and European Projects Cristian Ghinea explained the project is funded under the Large Infrastructure Operational Programme. There will be two lines of investment, one focusing on the bear census itself, while the other will help implement state-of-the-art technologies aimed at limiting the interaction of bears with humans. Last week the Government had passed an order regulating human intervention in situations involving bears, under which bears can be driven away in low-risk cases, and tranquilized and relocated or even shot if they attack people or livestock.

OLYMPICS Romania won two medals in Wednesday’s rowing finals at the Tokyo Olympics: Ancuţa Bodnar and Simona Radiş won gold in the women’s double scull event, while Romania’s four crew, made up of Mihăiţă Ţigănescu, Mugurel Semciuc, Ştefan Berariu and Cosmin Pascari scooped the silver. Adding to the two medals is Ana-Maria Popescu’s silver medal in the women’s epee event. Romanian fighter Maria Claudia Nechita Wednesday failed to qualify into the 57 kg boxing semi-finals, after losing to Japans Sena Irie, 3-2. A victory would have secured her an Olympic medal. Also on Wednesday, Romanias under-23 football team drew with New Zealand, in its last Group B match, and failed to move forward into the quarter-finals. The Romanians came out 3rd in the group, after South Korea and New Zealand and ahead of Honduras.

FESTIVAL The 2021 edition of the largest cinema event in Romania, the Transylvania International Film Festival (TIFF) continues in Cluj-Napoca (north-west), until Sunday. Over 170 films are screened in this years festival. Concerts and meetings with film industry representatives are also organised as part of the event. TIFF aims to promote cinema by presenting some of the most important contemporary works which reflect the originality of their authors, less common forms of cinematic expression and new cultural trends. This years special guest in the festival is international star Sergei Polunin, regarded as the most talented ballet dancer of his generation. (tr. A.M. Popescu)