English

Greek Flights To Romania Cancelled Over Strike By Greek Air Traffic Controllers

14:13, 10 Feb. 2010
Four flights from Athens, Greece, to Romania’s international airport Otopeni and one flight from capital city Bucharest to Greek city Thessaloniki were suspended Wednesday because of a strike by Greek air traffic controllers, Otopeni official Mihaela Chiril told MEDIAFAX Wednesday.

Romania Raises Guarantee Cap For New Housing Purchases To EUR75,000

14:11, 10 Feb. 2010
The guarantee ceiling for Romania’s government housing program will be kept at EUR60,000 for already built homes but will be raised to EUR70,000 or EUR75,000 for new homes.

Around 75% Of Romanian Pharmacies Close To Bankruptcy – Cegedim

13:59, 10 Feb. 2010
Around 75% of Romanian pharmacies are on the brink of bankruptcy, having stretched themselves too thin by continuing to provide discounted and free medicine, according to Petru Craciun, director of market analysis firm Cegedim.

Romania To Ready In Feb Draft Law Introducing Healthcare Co-Payment – Health Minister

13:11, 10 Feb. 2010
Romania’s Health Ministry will complete this month an IMF-required normative act introducing a co-payment system for public healthcare services, minister Cseke Attila said Wednesday, adding the law should have been completed by December 2009.

Romanian Govt OKs Pension Reform

12:57, 10 Feb. 2010
Romania’s Government Wednesday approved the draft law reforming the country’s public pension system and the act will be sent to Parliament for urgent debates and approval, people close to the matter told MEDIAFAX.

Romanian Public Sector Workers Threaten Full-Blown Strike For May Over Layoffs, Wage Cuts

12:50, 10 Feb. 2010
Nearly half a million Romanian public sector workers threaten to go on a full-blown strike in May because of planned layoffs and wage cuts, a union leader told a news conference Wednesday.

Romania Registers 121 Deaths, 6,986 AH1N1 Infections

10:41, 10 Feb. 2010
Romania registers 121 fatalities and 6,986 infections with the AH1N1 flu virus, as one person died and four others tested positive for the virus over the past 24 hours, the Health ministry said Wednesday.

Romanian Carmaker Dacia 2009 Profit At RON230.28M – Unaudited Results

10:40, 10 Feb. 2010
Romanian carmaker Automobile Dacia, the local unit of France’s Renault, turned a profit of 230.28 million lei (EUR1=RON4.1298) in 2009, up 3.7% compared to 2008, according to data the carmaker published in a merger draft with Auto Chassis International Romania.

Romania Bans Sale, Distribution Of Hallucinogenic Plants

10:01, 10 Feb. 2010
The Romanian Government on Wednesday adopted an emergency decree banning the distribution and sale of 36 plants and hallucinogenic substances.

Armed Robbery At Sports Betting Shop In SE Romania

09:29, 10 Feb. 2010
Two masked individuals broke into a sports betting house Tuesday night, in Mangalia, southeastern Romania, and managed to scoop up 7,000 lei (EUR1=RON4.1298) while holding the cashier at gunpoint.

U.S. Missile Shield Costs In Romania To Be Covered By U.S. – Romanian Foreign Affairs Min

19:37, 09 Feb. 2010
Romania will not have to buy SM-3 interceptor missiles and it will not pay for the setting up or layout of the location for the missiles on Romanian soil, according to the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

French Carmaker Renault To Produce Romanian Models Logan, Sandero In Algeria

19:24, 09 Feb. 2010
French carmaker Renault will announce its intention to construct a car plant in Algeria, one of the main export markets for Romanian carmaker Dacia owned by Renault, and the car plant will manufacture models Logan, Sandero and Symbol, according to French daily LeMonde.

Romanian Politician Nati Meir Indicted On Fraud Charges

17:04, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian anticorruption prosecutors have indicted former Romanian deputy Nati Meir on charges of defrauding eight people by paying them with fake banknotes in exchange for various services ahead of his campaign for the presidential elections in November 2009.

Romanian Parliament Bans Use Of ‘Academy’ Or ‘Authority’ In Association, Foundation Names

16:43, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian deputies decided Tuesday that future associations or foundations will be forbidden to use denominations that include words such as "commissariat", "inspectorate", "guard", "academy", "authority", "council", "agency" or their derivatives.

ING Revises Romania 2010 Jobless Rate Fcast To 9.5% Tops Vs 10.1%

16:21, 09 Feb. 2010
ING Bank Romania upgraded its forecast on Romania’s jobless rate to a peak of 9.5% in 2010, from a maximum rate of 10.1% previously, ING senior economist Nicolae Chidesciuc said Tuesday.

Romanian Lawmakers Adopt Draft Law Banning Hallucinogenic Plants

16:14, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian deputies adopted Tuesday a draft law banning the distribution and sale of plants and plant extracts that have hallucinogenic effects.

Romania’s Ambassador To Moldova Wants EBRD-Backed Romanian-Moldovan Investment Bank

16:12, 09 Feb. 2010
Marius Lazurca, Romania’s new ambassador to the Republic of Moldova, said Tuesday during hearings in the Parliament’s foreign policy committees he wants the creation of a Romanian-Moldovan investment bank with the help of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Southern Romania Under Code-Yellow Alert Next Two Days For Rain, Wind

16:05, 09 Feb. 2010
The southern half of Romania, including capital Bucharest, will be under a code-yellow alert for rain and gusty wind on Wednesday and Thursday, meteorologists said Tuesday.

Toyota Recalls 12,500 Cars In Romania Over Gas Pedals

15:39, 09 Feb. 2010
Japanese carmaker Toyota will recall 12,500 vehicles sold in Romania that might have defective gas pedals and will check them at the company’s expense, the carmaker’s local representative said Tuesday.

Romania Proprietatea Fund Increasingly Likely To Be Floated In ‘10 – Fin Min

15:38, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian investment fund Fondul Proprietatea is “increasingly likely” to be floated on the Bucharest Stock Exchange this year, Finance Minister Sebastian Vladescu said Tuesday.

Romanian VAT Rate Could Increase To 20%-21% In 2010 – PwC

15:35, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian authorities could increase the value added tax rate to 20% or even 21% in 2010 from 19% currently, an official of tax and advisory firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said Tuesday.

Two Thirds Of Romanian Eggs Come From Battery-Raised Chickens

15:34, 09 Feb. 2010
Two thirds of eggs produced in Romania come from chickens raised in batteries with surfaces smaller than that of a sheet of A4 paper and often fed with genetically modified feed and synthetic vitamins, said Tuesday Gabriel Paun of animal protection organization Vier Pfoten.

Romanian Parliament Committee Thumbs Down Proposition On Journalists’ Statement Of Interests

14:00, 09 Feb. 2010
The Romanian Parliament's committee for legal matters rejected Tuesday democrat liberal senator Iulian Urban’s proposition according to which all journalists would have to submit a statement of interests.

Romania Agric Min: Over 400,000 People Liable To Sanctions For Unfarmed Lands

13:59, 09 Feb. 2010
Over 400,000 people holding more than 1.5 million hectares of unfarmed lands are likely to be sanctioned as of spring, Agriculture Ministry state secretary Adrian Radulescu told MEDIAFAX Tuesday.

Romanian Justice Min Not Optimistic About EC Interim Justice Report On Romania

13:17, 09 Feb. 2010
Romanian Justice Minister Catalin Predoiu said Tuesday he is not very optimistic about the European Commission’s interim report on Romania’s progress in the justice sector saying some reforms have stalled because of intense political turmoil in the country.

Romania Fin Min: People Holding Farming Lands In Vain Should Be Sanctioned

12:14, 09 Feb. 2010
Romania’s Finance Minister Sebastian Vladescu said Tuesday, at the opening bell of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, that people who own farming lands but don’t use them should be sanctioned.

Schools In Romanian Capital Open Wednesday After Two-Day Blizzard-Induced Vacation

12:01, 09 Feb. 2010
Schools and kindergartens in Romania’s capital Bucharest will open Wednesday after a two-day vacation prompted by fierce blizzards and heavy snowfall that swept the southern part of the country left dozens of roads impassable.

Romanian Education Unionists Call On Ministry To Issue Order Regulating Wage System

11:50, 09 Feb. 2010
The secretary general of the National Federation of Free Unions in Education (FSLI), Liviu Pop, on Tuesday said it is highly necessary to clear out salary issues in the education sector immediately, adding the federation has called on the Education Ministry to issue an order and regulate the matter.

Romanian Parliament Foreign Policy Committees Endorse Romania’s Ambassador To Moldova

11:14, 09 Feb. 2010
Romania’s foreign policy committees in Parliament endorsed Tuesday diplomat Marius Lazurca for the position of ambassador to the Republic of Moldova.

Romanian Car Maker Dacia Employees Announce Labor Conflict, Demand Higher Salaries

11:07, 09 Feb. 2010
Negotiations between the management and employees of Romanian carmaker Automobile Dacia have failed, so union leaders have announced a conflict of interest and presented their demands regarding the collective labor contract for 2010.

Romania 2009 Trade Gap Narrows To EUR9.74B VS EUR23.5B

10:01, 09 Feb. 2010
Romania’s trade deficit narrowed to EUR9.74 billion in 2009, from EUR23.51 billion a year earlier, with imports falling more rapidly than the exports, the National Statistics Institute said Tuesday.

Romanian Meteorologists Lift Code Yellow, Orange Weather Advisory

20:23, 08 Feb. 2010
Romanian meteorologists Monday evening lifted the code yellow and orange advisory for the southeastern part of the country, but warned that snowfall and gusty wind would continue for a few more hours.

EU Gives Romania Until 2012 To Correct Budget Gap

16:20, 08 Feb. 2010
The European Commission on Monday recommended Romania be given until 2012 to bring its budget deficit down to 3% of the gross domestic product, in light of the country’s “effective” corrective measures taken so far.

Romanian National Railway Co To Auction Off RON2.06M Gara De Nord Sanitation Contract

15:40, 08 Feb. 2010
Romanian national railroad company CFR SA will organize at the end of March an auction for sanitation services in Bucharest’s Gara de Nord train station, in a two-year contract worth an estimated 2.068 million lei (EUR1=RON4.1325), net of VAT, the company said in a press release Monday.

Romanian Public Administration Unions Suspend Strike As Labor Ministry Gives In To Demands

15:19, 08 Feb. 2010
The Romanian National Federation of Public Administration Unions (FNSA) announced Monday it would suspend the general strike planned for Friday, as well as Tuesday pickets, after the Labor Ministry said all of the terms provided by collective labor contracts would be respected.

Romania To Exempt Cos Hiring Jobless People From Paying Social Security

14:15, 08 Feb. 2010
Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc said Monday the Government is set to issue a normative act by the end of the month temporarily exempting companies hiring unemployed people from paying social security.

Romania Ctrl Bk Pumps RON3B Into Market In One-Week Repo

13:26, 08 Feb. 2010
Romania’s central bank on Monday injected 3.09 billion lei (EUR1=RON4.1325) into the monetary market in a one-week repurchase agreement operation, at an annual yield of 7%, equal to the key monetary policy rate.

Romania’s Jan Unemployment At 8.1%, Highest In 7 Years

13:10, 08 Feb. 2010
Romania’s unemployment rose for the 18th consecutive month in January, and the jobless rate reached an almost seven-year high at 8.1%, official data showed Monday.

Romania’s Natural Gas Consumption Fell 15% In 2009

12:54, 08 Feb. 2010
Natural gas consumption in Romania dropped last year by 15%, to 140 million MWh (13.2 billion cubic meters), according to data released Monday by the country's energy watchdog ANRE.

Romania, IMF Loan Agreement Could Be Switched To Precautionary – Fin Min

12:53, 08 Feb. 2010
Romania’s standby arrangement with the International Monetary Fund could be changed into a “precautionary” agreement after the fund’s new review mission in May, provided the local economy shows real signs of recovery, Finance Minister Sebastian Vladescu said Monday.