A new AstraZeneca vaccine shipment arrives in Romania
Romania is accelerating his coronavirus vaccination campaign, with a new record of over 51,000 doses administered on Wednesday. So far, almost 1.3 million Romanians have received at least one dose of vaccine. The new transport of approximately 100,000 doses is intended mainly for cities where the incidence of coronavirus infection is over 4.5 per thousand and where the vaccination campaign passed to the third stage, the one in which the general population can be vaccinated. Romania has seen an increase in the number of cases of coronavirus infection, with over 5,200 new cases in the last 24 hours and a high number of deaths, 96. According to official data, 1,171 patients are hospitalized to ICUs. The capital Bucharest and the counties of Timiş, Cluj, Braşov and Ilfov remain in the red scenario regarding the incidence of cases per thousand inhabitants.
Romanian Government propose „Green Friday” campaign, in an attempt to reduce pollution in big cities
The Romanian Ministry of Environment has launched a campaign, „Green Friday”, which proposes that Romanians replacing their personal car by bicycle, scooter, public transport or walking every Friday. The proposal primarily aims to reduce pollution in large cities. The new campaign, presented by the Romanian Minister of Environment, Tánczos Barna, will be launched on Friday and is based on volunteering, the first called to set an example in this regard being employees of public institutions. More than 60% of air pollution in large cities is due to traffic. „The Ministry of Environment wants to establish Green Friday in Romania, as a voluntary initiative by which we invite all citizens to give up, on Friday, the classic travel by personal car. We also had a preliminary discussion at the Government level, and our fellow ministers, cabinet members have already made their calculations of who with what transport will come at work on the first day of ‘Green Friday’”, said Tánczos Barna.
The inflation rate has increased in Romania
The annual inflation rate in Romania rose to 3.2% in February, from almost 3% in January, announces the National Institute of Statistics. According to data released on Thursday, the evolution of non-food prices, which rose by almost 4%, contributed to the increase in inflation, while food prices increased by 2.7%. Services also continued to increase tariffs, with an over 2.3% registered in February. The National Bank of Romania estimates inflation at 2% at the end of the first quarter and 2.5% at the end of the year, but economic analysts insist that inflation targets will be difficult to maintain if the current trend continues. The national currency, the leu, also recorded seven consecutive days of decline against the euro, reaching a new all-time low of 4.88 lei on Wednesday at the exchange rate announced by the NBR. The American dollar was quoted at 4.10 lei./mbaciu
