Romanian President Klaus Iohannis signs changes to Fiscal Code
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis signed into law changes to the country’s Fiscal Code on Wednesday. The law includes changes allowing a VAT cut from 24 to 19 percent starting from January 1, 2016. Romania defied EU and IMF warnings by pushing through tax cuts aimed at shoring up its economy. The changes also include the drop of an additional tax on fuel and „special” buildings. And more, buildings are to be charged according to their destination – residential, non-residential or mixed, and their owner – legal or natural person.
Romania’s National Bank leaves key interest rate unchanged
Romania’s National Bank (BNR) left its key interest rate unchanged at a record low of 1.75 percent on Wednesday. The move was in line with expectations by analysts who had updated their predictions after developments in the Greek debt crisis. BNR also decided to keep minimum reserve requirements for leu and hard currency liabilities at 8 and 14 percent respectively. Four banks with majority Greek capital in Romania account for about 12 percent of the country’s banking assets and BNR had said they were well capitalised, with average capital ratio slightly above 17 percent – 10 percent above the capital ratio requirement set by the regulator.
Layoffs in Romania’s Jiu Valley
Some 225 miners in south-western Romanian mining communities in Petrila, Paroşeni and Uricani are getting unemployed on Wednesday. They are expected to receive compensatory wages in the next 30 days. Some 500 miners are expected to get unemployed as part of a restructuring programme requested by the European Commission, and executive Aurel Anghel said he filed a note to the European Commission last year aimed at reducing the figure in order to ensure further safety of the underground activity. More than half of the miners are eligible for retirement – 45 years of age and over 20 years of underground work. Former miners are giving up their job reluctantly. The miners will receive compensations worth RON 30,000 each, and a monthly additional income besides unemployment benefits in the next two years.
Romanian conductor Ludovic Bács dies at 85
Romanian conductor Ludovic Bács died on Tuesday, June 30. He was 85. He was born in the western Romanian town of Petrila, Hunedoara county, on January 19, 1930. A conductor, composer, violist and pedagogue, Ludovic Bács, began his musical training in his hometown of Petrila before completing his musical education at Music Conservatoire in Cluj-Napoca. Between 1951-1956, he got a scholarship allowing him to study at the Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Conservatoire in Moscow. In 1957, Ludovic Bács started working with the Romanian Radio’s Symphony Orchestra, first as a viola player, then as a conductor before being appointed its artistic director in 1964. He retired in 1991. Ludovic Bács was a member of the Romanian Composers’ Union.
Alexandru Danga – RADOR
