Author: Alexandru Popescu

Romania's economy grew by 0.8% last year, compared with an increase of 1.3% forecast in June last year and 2.1% estimated at the beginning of last year, according to the latest Global Economic Prospects report published by the World Bank. Also, Romania's GDP is expected to grow by 1.3% this year, compared with the 1.9% forecast in June last year and the 2.6% estimated in January 2025 by the World Bank. The pace of growth of the Romanian economy is expected to improve in 2027,...

The National Bank of Romania started 2026 with maximum caution and the NBR's Board of Directors decided to keep the monetary policy rate at 6.5%, in line with analysts' expectations. The NBR remains in a wait-and-protect zone until inflation is firmly on a downward trajectory. Even though Romania has the highest inflation in the EU, the central bank is keeping the interest rate unchanged as the current price spike is largely administrative and temporary. According to some economists, the first window for a gradual interest rate cut could come in May-June, but others see the easing as likely...

Four out of ten employees use artificial intelligence several times a day for work or in their personal lives, with most asking for advice to solve a specific problem, to generate text, image or sound, or to search for products and services, a survey by a recruitment platform reveals. The rate of adoption and use of artificial intelligence tools has been on the rise lately, and the latest survey conducted by eJobs Romania shows that 4 out of 10 participants use artificial intelligence several times a day for work or in their personal life, 21.5%...

Energy costs will be key in the race to develop AI, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in Davos. As countries race to build AI infrastructure to capitalize on the technology's promise of huge efficiency gains, Nadella said Tuesday at the World Economic Forum (WEF) that „GDP growth anywhere will be directly correlated” to the cost of energy in using AI, according to CNBC. He pointed to the existence of a new global commodity called „tokens” - basic processing units that are bought by users of AI models, enabling them to perform tasks. The task of every economy and every firm in...

Ubisoft shares fell 34% on Thursday after the Assassin's Creed video game maker announced a major restructuring, along with plans to shutter studios and eliminate six games, according to CNBC. The changes come following years of falling share prices in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, after major launch delays and financial difficulties. The Paris-listed company said it expects to post an operating loss of about 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) in the fiscal year ending in 2026, following a 650 million euro writedown ...

Road hauliers have become increasingly competitive in Western Europe, with around 60,000 trucks out of the 180,000 trucks of Romanian companies currently operating in developed markets such as Germany, France, Italy or Spain, where demand for logistics services remains high. At the same time, the elimination of time lost at the border and from the fluidization of logistical operations have contributed to the more than €1bn extra in the transport balance surplus in the first 11 months of last year, UNTRR president Radu Dinescu told ZF Live. They are in the area of countries with large territories and strong economies, which need...

The employers' confederation IMM Romania proposed on Thursday an economic recovery program for small and medium-sized enterprises made up of 11 financing programs to support micro-enterprises, which it considers mandatory for the third reform package to be adopted by the Bolojan Government. The programs have appeared in public, having been assumed in various government programs, in election campaigns, when the Government was sworn in or when politicians presented proposals to support them to the business environment, explained the president of IMM Romania, Florin Jianu, according to Agerpres. The organization thus proposes certain programs to support SMEs, such as IMM INVEST - guarantees for...

Romanians returned more than 5.2 billion packages last year, with more than 350 million packages collected in December, RetuRO, the administrator of the Guarantee-Return System, reported on Thursday. This brings the collection rate to 83% in 2025. This result reflects the growing involvement of consumers and the high level of confidence in the functioning of the system. Over 350 million packages were collected in December, with a monthly return rate of approximately 72%. Thus, the results for 2025 confirm the operational maturity of the system and its widespread adoption, a RetuRO release said. During...

Samus Tec has announced that it is investing in a new asphalt concrete plant in Târgu Lăpuș. The production unit of the company owned by Cluj businessman Ioan Tecar will be realized through an investment of 5.5 million euro, on 7,500 sqm, in the new Intelligent Specialization Park (PSI), according to Transilvania Business. The signing of the concession contract with Samus Tec Dej (STD), a company that will develop a production unit for the manufacture of concrete products for construction, contributing to the strengthening of the local and regional economic sector, will be realized on a 7,587 sqm plot of land, within the PSI Târgu Lăpuș. The total value...

MetaWealth, a European real estate investment platform with Michael Topolinski as founder, announces investments of €110 million in autonomous energy storage projects at scale. The first investment in the program, worth €22 million, aims to develop a total capacity of 130 MWh. The project includes a 100 MWh autonomous storage system in Dumbrava, Neamț County, located close to grid infrastructure and renewable generation capacities, as well as 30 MWh storage units installed in colocation at several points connected to the existing electricity grid....