November 14, 2022

Inflation – The National Bank of Romania – BNR increased the inflation forecast for the end of this year to 16.3% and estimates an inflation of 11.2% for the end of next year, according to data presented on Monday by Governor Mugur Isărescu. In August, BNR had estimated an inflation rate of 13.9% for the end of the year and of 7.5% for 2023. Last week, BNR estimated that the annual inflation rate was expected to increase moderately towards the end of the current year, and then enter a gradual downward trajectory, which would go down to the level of one digit in the first semester of 2024. 

Energy- In Bucharest, deputies start discussions on the Emergency Ordinance 119, which caps and sets energy prices. The government intends to keep electricity prices capped for a longer period of time, until 2025, and in this sense a new Emergency Ordinance was adopted, which establishes a mechanism for the centralized purchase of electricity at 450 lei (about 90 Euros) per MWh. The document comes to the aid of the Emergency Ordinance already forwarded to Parliament, and the mechanism will allow keeping the three types of prices for domestic consumers - 68 bani (almost 14 eurocents) for consumption of up to 100 kilowatts, 80 bani (about 16 eurocents) for consumption of up to 255 kilowatts, and 1.3 lei (about 26 eurocents) respectively for what exceeds 255 kilowatts. It will also allow maintaining the ceilings for SMEs - 1 leu per kWh (about 20 eurocents) and large consumers - at a maximum price of 1.30 lei. The opposition criticizes the new Emergency Ordinance, stating that the decision, in principle, had to encourage investments in production and saving. The changes that the deputies will bring to the Emergency Ordinance that establishes tariffs and consumption caps will most likely come into force on January 1.

Meeting - The Romanian foreign minister, Bogdan Aurescu, is participating today, in Brussels, in the meeting of foreign ministers from the EU member states. The debates focus, among other things, on Russia's aggression against Ukraine, with the Ukrainian foreign minister participating via video conference, and the recent developments in the Western Balkans, Lebanon and Iran. At the same time, European officials are analyzing the results of the UN meeting dedicated to climate change, COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Jakarta - The American president Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Monday said that they were ready for dialogue despite the rivalry between their countries, AFP reports. At the start of their much-awaited bilateral meeting on the Indonesian island of Bali, Joe Biden said he wanted to manage differences and avoid turning the competition into conflict, while Xi Jinping said there was no substitute for a face-to-face discussion and that he was ready for a 'sincere' dialogue on strategic issues, so that Washington and Beijing could find the right direction. The two leaders met on Tuesday before the start of the G20 summit, which takes place on the island of Bali in Indonesia. Besides China's refusal to condemn the Russian invasion, Washington and Beijing are at odds over issues ranging from trade to human rights in China's Xinjiang region and the status of Taiwan. It is the first meeting between the two leaders after Joe Biden took over the presidency of the USA.

Bomb - The person who placed a bomb on a shopping street in Istanbul on Sunday, killing at least six people and injuring 81, has been arrested, the Turkish Interior Minister Souleyman Soylu announced on Monday. He accused the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) - a secessionist organization considered terrorist in Turkey - of causing the attack. In Bucharest, both the President Klaus Iohannis and the Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca sent messages of condolences to the Turkish people for the losses suffered and wished full recovery to the injured following the tragic incident. According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry, until now, no Romanian citizens have been identified among the victims of the attack in Istanbul, and at the level of the Consulate General, no requests for consular assistance have been received in connection with this incident. (LS)