The war in Ukraine had a seismic effect on the security, political and economic landscape of Southeast Europe.
Since the headline inflation is not likely to ease below 10% by the end of the year, the BNR will most probably keep the monetary policy rate at 7% for at least a year.
World coal consumption reached a new high in 2022 before levelling out in 2023 and 2024, with rising usage in emerging Asian countries cancelling out falling demand in advanced economies.
Hungary, Czechia, Poland, Slovakia and Romania all plan new reactors and many countries are also looking at small modular reactors for the future.
Plastic waste has become a key issue in the fight against climate change. As experts and activists debate the merits of recycling versus reducing plastics overall, petrochemical companies should speed up their plans to recycle plastic waste.
Eight countries in Europe recorded all-time high temperature records for January on New Year’s Day this year. The following data draws from the visualization of meteorologist Scott Duncan and reports by the BBC, Statista reports.
The construction works index in Romania rose by 34.3% y/y in October, reaching another decades-long high.
Major Western banks had already adjusted their regional portfolio allocations back to Central Europe so the Ukraine war has not forced a complete reassessment of business strategies.
Polls show Romanians mostly blame President Klaus Iohannis for the country's failure to enter the border-free Schengen zone.
To reduce carbon emissions, Europe aims to transition travellers from planes to trains. Its extensive rail network and the growing consumer demand for greener transport solutions provide a clear opportunity.
The world is set to see global GDP plummet by a catastrophic 15% by 2050 if current emissions trends are not reined in and global warming reaches 2.2°C by 2050.
EU policymakers have provisionally agreed this week to introduce the world’s first carbon border tax in a push to encourage cleaner industrial production globally and protect its domestic industry.
Industrial production in Romania contracted by 2.6% y/y in January-October and the government’s forecasting body expects only a marginal recovery in 2023.
The global economy has been through some enormous changes in recent years, leading investors and analysts to believe we are at the start of a new high-inflation, lower-growth super-cycle that could last for as long as a decade.
Interest rate hikes have eased price pressures, but the weather, war and material costs could keep food prices elevated for longer,
Further rate increases likely as inflation starts to rise again in November.
In December the EU commissioned a secret report to assess just how badly the war in Ukraine, and the polycrisis it is fuelling, is hurting Europe’s economy. Good news: Europe is doing OK; bad news: so is Russia.
Ashgabat said to be signalling that “it won’t get out of bed for anything less”.
Debate of what should go into the EU’s ninth package of sanctions is bogged down in disagreement. EU foreign ministers met on December 12 to think up more measures to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine, but could not agree on how best to do this.
Global debt remained above pre-pandemic levels in 2021 even after posting its steepest decline in 70 years, underscoring the challenges for policymakers.