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Saturday, April 30, 2005
Governor of the National Bank of Romania Mugur Isarescu insisted that commercial banks cut down interest rates on both credits and deposits.
"I hope I'll see 10-12 per cent interest rates this summer already. Romania enters a capital inflow rise period, and we need to absorb this money. Furthermore, high interests attract speculative capitals, which must be avoided," Isarescu stated in a roundtable on the national currency denomination held at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the City of Bucharest.
He emphasised that with the capital account deregulation the competition would rise substantially, so that banks "will have no choice" but to cut down interest rates. Attending the seminar, Radu Gratian Ghetea, head of the Romanian Banks Association, did not share this optimism, and stated banks cannot yet afford to operate such substantial interest cuts.
"If by the end of the year interests paid on deposits will reach 8-10 per cent, then banks will be able to grant credits for an average 16-18 per cent interest," Ghetea estimated. The reasons which made banks work with so high interest rates include, according to Ghetea, the significant costs that banks will incur with the delay in the denomination process.
We all hope to see lower interest rates....by the way, I wonder if ING lowered their interest rates for my credit...are they that adaptive?
Posted by Mihai : 4/30/2005 11:28:00 pm
"I hope I'll see 10-12 per cent interest rates this summer already. Romania enters a capital inflow rise period, and we need to absorb this money. Furthermore, high interests attract speculative capitals, which must be avoided," Isarescu stated in a roundtable on the national currency denomination held at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the City of Bucharest.
He emphasised that with the capital account deregulation the competition would rise substantially, so that banks "will have no choice" but to cut down interest rates. Attending the seminar, Radu Gratian Ghetea, head of the Romanian Banks Association, did not share this optimism, and stated banks cannot yet afford to operate such substantial interest cuts.
"If by the end of the year interests paid on deposits will reach 8-10 per cent, then banks will be able to grant credits for an average 16-18 per cent interest," Ghetea estimated. The reasons which made banks work with so high interest rates include, according to Ghetea, the significant costs that banks will incur with the delay in the denomination process.
We all hope to see lower interest rates....by the way, I wonder if ING lowered their interest rates for my credit...are they that adaptive?
Posted by Mihai : 4/30/2005 11:28:00 pm
Friday, April 29, 2005
The Global Finance investment fund is negociating the buying of 80% of the TotalSoft company in Romania.
The deal should be worth about 10 milion USD.
The rest of 20% should remain to Mr. Dragan, currently the General Manager of TotalSoft.
Total soft has been founded in 1994 and is expected to have incomes of about 7,5 milion USD in 2005. TotalSoft specializez in developing the Charisma ERP and also doing custom software development.
Posted by Mihai : 4/29/2005 10:39:00 am
The deal should be worth about 10 milion USD.
The rest of 20% should remain to Mr. Dragan, currently the General Manager of TotalSoft.
Total soft has been founded in 1994 and is expected to have incomes of about 7,5 milion USD in 2005. TotalSoft specializez in developing the Charisma ERP and also doing custom software development.
Posted by Mihai : 4/29/2005 10:39:00 am
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Connex and Research In Motion announced plans to offer BlackBerry, a leading wireless platform, to mobile customers in Romania. BlackBerry will operate on Connex's GSM/GPRS network in Romania and international roaming will be supported in countries where Connex has GPRS roaming agreements in place.
BlackBerry provides always-on, push-based, mobile access to e-mail and other communications and information for both individual and corporate customers. The BlackBerry 7290 Wireless Handheld will enable Connex's subscribers to access e-mail, phone, text messaging, Internet browser, organizer and corporate data applications via a single, integrated device. The high-resolution color screen displays crisp images with support for more than 65,000 colors, offering superior battery life for optimal wireless performance. With BlackBerry, users can easily and remotely manage their e-mail, appointments and contacts and access corporate applications while on the go.
More details on www.connex.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/26/2005 10:25:00 am
BlackBerry provides always-on, push-based, mobile access to e-mail and other communications and information for both individual and corporate customers. The BlackBerry 7290 Wireless Handheld will enable Connex's subscribers to access e-mail, phone, text messaging, Internet browser, organizer and corporate data applications via a single, integrated device. The high-resolution color screen displays crisp images with support for more than 65,000 colors, offering superior battery life for optimal wireless performance. With BlackBerry, users can easily and remotely manage their e-mail, appointments and contacts and access corporate applications while on the go.
More details on www.connex.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/26/2005 10:25:00 am
Monday, April 25, 2005
I read today a very nice poll about the Romanian politics, media and others.
Some of the key findings in this poll reveal that:
- if we had elections today, the DA alliance will get about 56% of the votes. PSD will only get 26%.
- The people that will vote for PSD are mostly people over 65 years old or people with under-high-school education. As pointed out in the article, "as the level of education increases, PSD gets less votes" :)
- 55% of the population are happy with our prime minister, mr. Tariceanu, while 63% are happy with Traian Basescu.
- Over 22% of the population was affected by the recent currency evolutions of LEU vs EUR and USD.
- TVR, ProTV and Antena 1 are still the most popular TV stations. Realitatea tv (one of my favourites) is on fourth place.
- Only 22% of the population reads newspapers daily.
For the complete article, click here.
Posted by Mihai : 4/25/2005 07:27:00 pm
Some of the key findings in this poll reveal that:
- if we had elections today, the DA alliance will get about 56% of the votes. PSD will only get 26%.
- The people that will vote for PSD are mostly people over 65 years old or people with under-high-school education. As pointed out in the article, "as the level of education increases, PSD gets less votes" :)
- 55% of the population are happy with our prime minister, mr. Tariceanu, while 63% are happy with Traian Basescu.
- Over 22% of the population was affected by the recent currency evolutions of LEU vs EUR and USD.
- TVR, ProTV and Antena 1 are still the most popular TV stations. Realitatea tv (one of my favourites) is on fourth place.
- Only 22% of the population reads newspapers daily.
For the complete article, click here.
Posted by Mihai : 4/25/2005 07:27:00 pm
Friday, April 22, 2005
A friend of mine, Radu, told me today to try and install the new Opera 8.0 browser. He worked with the Opera company and he told me there are some neat features to be discovered.
So I did. And I am totaly happy for this. After 15 minutes of looking through the features, I can say that some are totaly cool. For example:
- you can easily make notes out of text on a page
- you can use mouse gestures (you have to try them) in order to do some quick browsing.
- if you accidentally close a page, you can retrieve it real quick by using the trash bin inside the application.
- the speak function is really great
- websites load very fast.
- And a lot of other things (zoom, wand, etc.)
The full list of features is available HERE.
Still, I cannot say that is perfect:
- I had some problems with the www.blogger.com website.
- some of the other websites are not fully optimized for it.
As a conclusion, I strongly recommend you to download the 8.0 version here.
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 10:33:00 pm
So I did. And I am totaly happy for this. After 15 minutes of looking through the features, I can say that some are totaly cool. For example:
- you can easily make notes out of text on a page
- you can use mouse gestures (you have to try them) in order to do some quick browsing.
- if you accidentally close a page, you can retrieve it real quick by using the trash bin inside the application.
- the speak function is really great
- websites load very fast.
- And a lot of other things (zoom, wand, etc.)
The full list of features is available HERE.
Still, I cannot say that is perfect:
- I had some problems with the www.blogger.com website.
- some of the other websites are not fully optimized for it.
As a conclusion, I strongly recommend you to download the 8.0 version here.
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 10:33:00 pm
Here is something I have been waiting for a long time...Google can now remember your searches. The service is called Google Search History and has recently been launched.
All you need is a Google Account (the same one as your Gmail account) and to enable the feature. You can view search history by day and perform searches inside it.
I hope this will help me remember all the interesting things I come across day-by-day but don't have the time to remember / store them in some place.
What would be your ideas / hints for managing all the interesting links and tools you come across? Would the IE Favourites do the trick? Or do you use more advanced tools?
Looking forward for your feedback.
Also, for those of you living in the US the Google Ride Finder service could be of much use. Find it inside Google Labs.
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 07:08:00 pm
All you need is a Google Account (the same one as your Gmail account) and to enable the feature. You can view search history by day and perform searches inside it.
I hope this will help me remember all the interesting things I come across day-by-day but don't have the time to remember / store them in some place.
What would be your ideas / hints for managing all the interesting links and tools you come across? Would the IE Favourites do the trick? Or do you use more advanced tools?
Looking forward for your feedback.
Also, for those of you living in the US the Google Ride Finder service could be of much use. Find it inside Google Labs.
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 07:08:00 pm
A special enlargement report on Romania has recently been published on EUPolitix.com website.
Some exceprts from the report are:
"The only obstacle to Bucharest joining the EU in 2007 as planned, according to president Traian Basescu, is Romania itself. "
"With gross domestic product at 30 per cent of the EU average it will be the poorest EU member state, and the administration also knows that 'a certain mistrust' among some MEPs still needs to be overcome."
"So far Brussels is happy with Bucharest’s preparations, and it looks as though the government’s determination and optimism is paying off. "
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 07:00:00 pm
Some exceprts from the report are:
"The only obstacle to Bucharest joining the EU in 2007 as planned, according to president Traian Basescu, is Romania itself. "
"With gross domestic product at 30 per cent of the EU average it will be the poorest EU member state, and the administration also knows that 'a certain mistrust' among some MEPs still needs to be overcome."
"So far Brussels is happy with Bucharest’s preparations, and it looks as though the government’s determination and optimism is paying off. "
Posted by Mihai : 4/22/2005 07:00:00 pm
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Here is how the new LEU will look like:
This is the 500 LEU note, which will have the same size as the 200 EUR bill.
For more details, please check the article on Denominare.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/21/2005 02:19:00 pm
This is the 500 LEU note, which will have the same size as the 200 EUR bill.
For more details, please check the article on Denominare.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/21/2005 02:19:00 pm
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Elran Holdings and New Pharm Drugstores Ltd. will set up a nationwide drugstore chain in Romania under the New Pharm label. The parties signed a cooperation agreement on Monday. The joint company, New Pharm Europe, has signed its first lease for a drugstore to be opened in August in Constanta, a Black Sea port and resort city with 300,000 residents.
"The joint Elran-New Pharm venture is the most innovative retail venture in Romania. The country is considered a drugstore business opportunity, since the country only has pharmacies and lacks stores with a drugstore concept", reports Globes Israel.
New Pharm Europe will operate as a private company in Romania. Elran and New Pharm will each own half of the company, which plans to establish a nationwide chain of drugstores.
Posted by Mihai : 4/20/2005 05:55:00 pm
"The joint Elran-New Pharm venture is the most innovative retail venture in Romania. The country is considered a drugstore business opportunity, since the country only has pharmacies and lacks stores with a drugstore concept", reports Globes Israel.
New Pharm Europe will operate as a private company in Romania. Elran and New Pharm will each own half of the company, which plans to establish a nationwide chain of drugstores.
Posted by Mihai : 4/20/2005 05:55:00 pm
Here is a great post from someone who spend 3 hours with the second richest man in the world, Warren Buffet from Berkshire Hathaway.
It is really worth reading. And more, Warren Buffet's message is also worth reading, specially for people in the US of A.
The thanks go to Mihai for the link.
Posted by Mihai : 4/20/2005 01:23:00 pm
It is really worth reading. And more, Warren Buffet's message is also worth reading, specially for people in the US of A.
The thanks go to Mihai for the link.
Posted by Mihai : 4/20/2005 01:23:00 pm
Monday, April 18, 2005
Now this is some news...
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Macromedia (Nasdaq: MACR) in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.4 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by both boards of directors, Macromedia stockholders will receive, at a fixed exchange ratio, 0.69 shares of Adobe common stock for every share of Macromedia common stock in a tax-free exchange. Based on Adobe’s and Macromedia’s closing prices on Friday April 15, 2005, this represents a price of $41.86 per share of Macromedia common stock.
more details HERE.
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 07:22:00 pm
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Macromedia (Nasdaq: MACR) in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.4 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by both boards of directors, Macromedia stockholders will receive, at a fixed exchange ratio, 0.69 shares of Adobe common stock for every share of Macromedia common stock in a tax-free exchange. Based on Adobe’s and Macromedia’s closing prices on Friday April 15, 2005, this represents a price of $41.86 per share of Macromedia common stock.
more details HERE.
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 07:22:00 pm
From what they announced, the Connex 3G phone will be the new Motorola v975.
You can find more about this phone HERE or HERE.
Also, check the picture below (click for full size).
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 05:02:00 pm
You can find more about this phone HERE or HERE.
Also, check the picture below (click for full size).
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 05:02:00 pm
Connex announced the April 25th, 2005 launch of 3G services in Romania. The service includes coverage in 8 cities (Bucuresti, Cluj, Timisoara, Brasov, Iasi, Constanta, Craiova, Ploiesti) and on the main highway from Bucharest to Brasov.
"Connex is very proud to be the first operator to bring Romania 3G services, 8 years after introducing GSM. We strongly believe that Romania needs access to the best technology and to the newest generation of services. We are confident in the great future of the country and we believe strong growth will continue. Connex knows Romanians demand the very best technology and services. Today, in 3G, we are delivering it", said Ted Lattimore, President and COO Connex.
"3G services from Connex will bring an exciting experience through the world of video mobile communications. Romanian users now have 3 good reasons to move to 3G: the unique experience of the video call, fast Internet and more affordable voice services. We are very proud to be able to offer Romanians the future, today", said Ken Campbell, Chief Marketing Officer Connex.
In addition to video calling, users will be able to enjoy mobile television as well as an exciting portfolio of new content. Music down loads, movie trailers, music videos, ring tones and other entertainment will be made available to our customers.
Business customers will also be able to benefit as video calling supports an enormous range of applications for the mobile workforce. In addition, with the Mobile Connect card, Connex 3G subscribers will have faster and easier access to the Internet, Intranet and Corporate e-mail, with up to 384 kbps data speeds.
Attractive introductory offers combine video calling, fast Internet and more affordable voice in one single package. The introductory promotion also involves discounts of up to 33% on 3G handsets.
More details on www.connex.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 04:39:00 pm
"Connex is very proud to be the first operator to bring Romania 3G services, 8 years after introducing GSM. We strongly believe that Romania needs access to the best technology and to the newest generation of services. We are confident in the great future of the country and we believe strong growth will continue. Connex knows Romanians demand the very best technology and services. Today, in 3G, we are delivering it", said Ted Lattimore, President and COO Connex.
"3G services from Connex will bring an exciting experience through the world of video mobile communications. Romanian users now have 3 good reasons to move to 3G: the unique experience of the video call, fast Internet and more affordable voice services. We are very proud to be able to offer Romanians the future, today", said Ken Campbell, Chief Marketing Officer Connex.
In addition to video calling, users will be able to enjoy mobile television as well as an exciting portfolio of new content. Music down loads, movie trailers, music videos, ring tones and other entertainment will be made available to our customers.
Business customers will also be able to benefit as video calling supports an enormous range of applications for the mobile workforce. In addition, with the Mobile Connect card, Connex 3G subscribers will have faster and easier access to the Internet, Intranet and Corporate e-mail, with up to 384 kbps data speeds.
Attractive introductory offers combine video calling, fast Internet and more affordable voice in one single package. The introductory promotion also involves discounts of up to 33% on 3G handsets.
More details on www.connex.ro.
Posted by Mihai : 4/18/2005 04:39:00 pm
Friday, April 15, 2005
Romania's March unemployment rate fell to 6.0%, from 6.2% the previous month, the national employment agency ANOFM said on Thursday.
The western county of Hunedoara had the highest unemployment rate of 10.9% in March. The lowest rate of 2.3% was registered in the counties of Bihor and Timis, located in northwestern and western Romania, respectively.
Unemployment fell steadily last year to 6.8% due to strong economic growth, which came at 8.1% through the third quarter, beating the government forecast of 6.5%.
In November ANOFM added 0.1 percentage points to the unemployment rate calculated for each of the first 10 months of 2004 to reflect changes in population numbers.
Posted by Mihai : 4/15/2005 07:23:00 pm
The western county of Hunedoara had the highest unemployment rate of 10.9% in March. The lowest rate of 2.3% was registered in the counties of Bihor and Timis, located in northwestern and western Romania, respectively.
Unemployment fell steadily last year to 6.8% due to strong economic growth, which came at 8.1% through the third quarter, beating the government forecast of 6.5%.
In November ANOFM added 0.1 percentage points to the unemployment rate calculated for each of the first 10 months of 2004 to reflect changes in population numbers.
Posted by Mihai : 4/15/2005 07:23:00 pm
France Telecom agreed on Thursday to pay $523 million to raise its stake in Orange Romania, adding to the Eastward rush by West European telecommunications companies seeking faster growth.
France Telecom will increase its holding in the Orange unit to 96.6 percent from 73.3 percent in a transaction valuing the Romanian operator at about $2.2 billion, the company said. Orange Romania has a market share of 48 percent, and its sales rose 47 percent last year.
Related to this subject: Vodafone aquires Connex Romania.
Posted by Mihai : 4/15/2005 11:38:00 am
France Telecom will increase its holding in the Orange unit to 96.6 percent from 73.3 percent in a transaction valuing the Romanian operator at about $2.2 billion, the company said. Orange Romania has a market share of 48 percent, and its sales rose 47 percent last year.
Related to this subject: Vodafone aquires Connex Romania.
Posted by Mihai : 4/15/2005 11:38:00 am
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Daedalus Consulting made a study in order to see how the Romanian banks are seen by their clients.
The complete article can be found HERE.
The final results were:
BRD Groupe Societe Generale - 7,89
BCR - 7,84
Raiffeisen Bank - 7,73
Banca Tiriac - 7,73
Banc Post - 7,49
CEC - 7,25
Banca Transilvania - 6,90
Posted by Mihai : 4/14/2005 10:35:00 am
The complete article can be found HERE.
The final results were:
BRD Groupe Societe Generale - 7,89
BCR - 7,84
Raiffeisen Bank - 7,73
Banca Tiriac - 7,73
Banc Post - 7,49
CEC - 7,25
Banca Transilvania - 6,90
Posted by Mihai : 4/14/2005 10:35:00 am
The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) recently announced its support for projects totaling $419,953 aimed at increasing information technology capabilities in Romania.
One project, announced in March during Traian Basescu's first visit to Washington as Romania’s president, seeks to establish a computer-based urban planning development system at City Hall in Bucharest.
The goal of the system is to allow for more efficient processing of applications for city services, according to USTDA.
During Basescu’s tenure as General Mayor of Bucharest, he focused on increasing the transparency of local government and providing more services to the general public, said USTDA Director Thelma J. Askey.
"Now, as President, he is seeking to implement some of those same policies to improve the efficiency and transparency of the national government. USTDA is supportive of those efforts."
For another project, USTDA awarded a $173,987 grant on April 6 to Romania’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forests, and Rural Development (MAPDR) to expand an ongoing USTDA-funded feasibility study on the development of modern national forestry and agricultural cadastre systems.
Both systems will utilize the same Geographic Information System (GIS) system technology for each cadastre, according to USTDA.
If implemented, the new system would improve the overall management of forestry and agricultural land in Romania by allowing for accurate measurements in the field.
This would enable the creation of an inventory of forestry and agricultural lands and their owners, as well as updated master plans that incorporate all of the changes generated by the land restitution process in Romania.
Deployment of the cadastre systems is also essential in the Romanian Government's efforts to rehabilitate irrigation systems, monitor and control contaminated soils, elaborate on soil protection policies, and manage and conserve forests.T
he U.S. Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries.
The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, feasibility studies, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment.
USTDA's strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development.
www.ustda.gov
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/14/2005 09:44:00 am
One project, announced in March during Traian Basescu's first visit to Washington as Romania’s president, seeks to establish a computer-based urban planning development system at City Hall in Bucharest.
The goal of the system is to allow for more efficient processing of applications for city services, according to USTDA.
During Basescu’s tenure as General Mayor of Bucharest, he focused on increasing the transparency of local government and providing more services to the general public, said USTDA Director Thelma J. Askey.
"Now, as President, he is seeking to implement some of those same policies to improve the efficiency and transparency of the national government. USTDA is supportive of those efforts."
For another project, USTDA awarded a $173,987 grant on April 6 to Romania’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forests, and Rural Development (MAPDR) to expand an ongoing USTDA-funded feasibility study on the development of modern national forestry and agricultural cadastre systems.
Both systems will utilize the same Geographic Information System (GIS) system technology for each cadastre, according to USTDA.
If implemented, the new system would improve the overall management of forestry and agricultural land in Romania by allowing for accurate measurements in the field.
This would enable the creation of an inventory of forestry and agricultural lands and their owners, as well as updated master plans that incorporate all of the changes generated by the land restitution process in Romania.
Deployment of the cadastre systems is also essential in the Romanian Government's efforts to rehabilitate irrigation systems, monitor and control contaminated soils, elaborate on soil protection policies, and manage and conserve forests.T
he U.S. Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries.
The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, feasibility studies, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment.
USTDA's strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development.
www.ustda.gov
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/14/2005 09:44:00 am
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Well, today was a very important day for Romania's efforts to join the EU in 2007. And it was a good day as both Romania and Bulgaria won the European Parliament's support for their plans to join the European Union in 2007. This will probably be boosting the chance of more foreign investment in the short and long term.
The Strasbourg, France-based parliament, which has veto power over EU membership treaties, today endorsed the Bulgarian and Romanian accession agreements due to be signed April 25 in Luxembourg. After completing entry talks in December, both Romania and Bulgaria still face threat of delay should they fail to upgrade our judicial systems and meet some other conditions including competition policy and state aid.
Legislators voted 497-93 in favour of Romania's application, with 71 abstentions and 522-70 in favour of Bulgaria's entry, with 69 abstentions.
Let's hope for the best, specially that now we have the new government...which a lot of people are hoping for the best from.
Posted by Mihai : 4/13/2005 07:14:00 pm
The Strasbourg, France-based parliament, which has veto power over EU membership treaties, today endorsed the Bulgarian and Romanian accession agreements due to be signed April 25 in Luxembourg. After completing entry talks in December, both Romania and Bulgaria still face threat of delay should they fail to upgrade our judicial systems and meet some other conditions including competition policy and state aid.
Legislators voted 497-93 in favour of Romania's application, with 71 abstentions and 522-70 in favour of Bulgaria's entry, with 69 abstentions.
Let's hope for the best, specially that now we have the new government...which a lot of people are hoping for the best from.
Posted by Mihai : 4/13/2005 07:14:00 pm
The new director of the corporate finance division of the audit company KMPG Romania and Moldova will be, as of next Monday, Guy Verduystert.
He was formerly the executive director at CA IB Romani.
KPMG is a global network of professional services belonging to KPMG International. The member companies offer audit services and fiscal consultancy to businesses.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/13/2005 11:26:00 am
He was formerly the executive director at CA IB Romani.
KPMG is a global network of professional services belonging to KPMG International. The member companies offer audit services and fiscal consultancy to businesses.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/13/2005 11:26:00 am
Monday, April 11, 2005
Finally, it happens. The interest rates for LEI credits are going down.
BRD was one of the first banks to announce this. They dropped the interest rate for credits with fix interest rates down to 15% from 22% as they were before. In the same time, the maximum credit has been raised to about 10.000 EUR.
BCR, ABN Amro and Tiriac Bank took similar measures about one month ago, reducing their interest rates as well. Tiriac Bank has 16% interest rate for METRO credits while ABN Amro reduced it to 13,5%.
This trend follows the NBR reduction in interest rates, a couple of months ago. The reference interest rate showed by NBR is 8,45% for April, dropping from 10,75% in March, 15,69% in February and 17,31% in January.
In the same time, it would be very interesting for students and unemployed persons to look for the ANOFM credit opportunity, that allows you to take a credit in LEI with an interest reate of only 2,1% per year. This credit is mostly available in regions with a high unemployement rate, such as Mehedinti, Hunedoara, Brasov, Vaslui, Olt, Teleorman and others.
More details about this HERE and HERE (both in Romanian).
Posted by Mihai : 4/11/2005 10:16:00 am
BRD was one of the first banks to announce this. They dropped the interest rate for credits with fix interest rates down to 15% from 22% as they were before. In the same time, the maximum credit has been raised to about 10.000 EUR.
BCR, ABN Amro and Tiriac Bank took similar measures about one month ago, reducing their interest rates as well. Tiriac Bank has 16% interest rate for METRO credits while ABN Amro reduced it to 13,5%.
This trend follows the NBR reduction in interest rates, a couple of months ago. The reference interest rate showed by NBR is 8,45% for April, dropping from 10,75% in March, 15,69% in February and 17,31% in January.
In the same time, it would be very interesting for students and unemployed persons to look for the ANOFM credit opportunity, that allows you to take a credit in LEI with an interest reate of only 2,1% per year. This credit is mostly available in regions with a high unemployement rate, such as Mehedinti, Hunedoara, Brasov, Vaslui, Olt, Teleorman and others.
More details about this HERE and HERE (both in Romanian).
Posted by Mihai : 4/11/2005 10:16:00 am
Friday, April 08, 2005
Brand Academy and Omnilogic are pleased to announce the former President Bill Clinton will be the keynote speaker at the BeyondBorders 2005 conference.
The theme of the conference is “Branding a country. Building reputation from within”.
The event marks the launch of BeyondBorders conferences initiated by Brand Academy in Romania and will take place on Saturday, May 21st, 2005.
Each year’s conference will focus on hot topics highly concerning the economic environment and will feature worldwide renowned speakers with extensive knowledge and expertise in fields such as business and economics, politics and government, technology, science and media.
Founded in 2003, Brand Academy is the first Romanian institution dedicated to brand education: assessment, strategy, management, implementation tactics, and integrated communications.
Brand Academy was born to address a widely spread need in the business community and not only for educational programs designed at enhancing people’s level of brand consciousness and brand knowledge. Brand Academy’s consulting team has extensive teaching and consulting experience, along with high professional credentials from prestigious international universities.
For further information on Brand Academy and BeyondBorders 2005, please visit www.brandacademy.ro and www.beyondborders.ro
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/08/2005 10:00:00 am
The theme of the conference is “Branding a country. Building reputation from within”.
The event marks the launch of BeyondBorders conferences initiated by Brand Academy in Romania and will take place on Saturday, May 21st, 2005.
Each year’s conference will focus on hot topics highly concerning the economic environment and will feature worldwide renowned speakers with extensive knowledge and expertise in fields such as business and economics, politics and government, technology, science and media.
Founded in 2003, Brand Academy is the first Romanian institution dedicated to brand education: assessment, strategy, management, implementation tactics, and integrated communications.
Brand Academy was born to address a widely spread need in the business community and not only for educational programs designed at enhancing people’s level of brand consciousness and brand knowledge. Brand Academy’s consulting team has extensive teaching and consulting experience, along with high professional credentials from prestigious international universities.
For further information on Brand Academy and BeyondBorders 2005, please visit www.brandacademy.ro and www.beyondborders.ro
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/08/2005 10:00:00 am
BancPost president, Elena Petculescu, announced her retirement on Thursday after 14 years as head of the bank.
The new president will be Mihai Bogza, former vice-governor of the National Bank of Romania.
The new management is to be approved by the General Shareholders Assembly on April 20.
Petculescu ran BancPost since 1991 and was vice-president of the Romanian Banks Association for three years.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/08/2005 09:27:00 am
The new president will be Mihai Bogza, former vice-governor of the National Bank of Romania.
The new management is to be approved by the General Shareholders Assembly on April 20.
Petculescu ran BancPost since 1991 and was vice-president of the Romanian Banks Association for three years.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/08/2005 09:27:00 am
Thursday, April 07, 2005
The total number of Internet users in Romania reached about 4 milion in March 2005, a 22% increase than the beggining of the year.
The total number of visits was 3.934.000 Romanian visitors and almost 10 million foreign visitors. It seems the foreign visitors are mostly attracted by download websites.
The most popular websites in Romania are still press websites and also websites from the Computers/Internet section.
The data was released by the Trafic.ro portal. Trafic.ro currently measures the trafic on more than 17.600 websites.
Actually, the total number of Internet users might be higher if you look also at the websites that don't have the trafic.ro script implemented (this blog does not, as trafic.ro refused to add it for some obscure reason).
Posted by Mihai : 4/07/2005 07:53:00 pm
The total number of visits was 3.934.000 Romanian visitors and almost 10 million foreign visitors. It seems the foreign visitors are mostly attracted by download websites.
The most popular websites in Romania are still press websites and also websites from the Computers/Internet section.
The data was released by the Trafic.ro portal. Trafic.ro currently measures the trafic on more than 17.600 websites.
Actually, the total number of Internet users might be higher if you look also at the websites that don't have the trafic.ro script implemented (this blog does not, as trafic.ro refused to add it for some obscure reason).
Posted by Mihai : 4/07/2005 07:53:00 pm
On Wall-Street.ro you can find a nice article about the Top Romanian Business Women in 2005.
Here is the link.
Here is the top 10:
Anca Vlad - president of FILDAS company (medical sector)
Maria Grapini - president of CA Pasmatex Timisoara
Irina Cajal - consultant in Romanian Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Georgiana Pogonaru - general manager Romcolor 2000
Ana Diculescu Sova - NNDKP lawyer
Elisabeta Lipa - athlete.
Anastasia Soare - stylist in Beverly Hills
Camelia Sucu - manager Class Mobexepert
Cristina Batlan - executive director Musette
Simona Marinescu - World Bank regional coordinator for Middle East and Noth Africa.
Posted by Mihai : 4/07/2005 11:23:00 am
Here is the link.
Here is the top 10:
Anca Vlad - president of FILDAS company (medical sector)
Maria Grapini - president of CA Pasmatex Timisoara
Irina Cajal - consultant in Romanian Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Georgiana Pogonaru - general manager Romcolor 2000
Ana Diculescu Sova - NNDKP lawyer
Elisabeta Lipa - athlete.
Anastasia Soare - stylist in Beverly Hills
Camelia Sucu - manager Class Mobexepert
Cristina Batlan - executive director Musette
Simona Marinescu - World Bank regional coordinator for Middle East and Noth Africa.
Posted by Mihai : 4/07/2005 11:23:00 am
Bucharest will the first city in Romania to host a pilot project for traffic safety called "ProSigur," which will later be launched in Timisoara, Cluj and Sibiu.
Peter Ter Meulen the president of the International Road Safety Academy's regional center told a press conference yesterday that statistics showed that car accidents are the main cause of death for people under the age of 50.
The program will be initiated in Bucharest next week, with the help of the city hall, the government and other foreign partners.
Leading companies on the surveillance and control equipment market from Germany and the Netherlands will provide the required equipment to the Romanian police, such as radar devices.
The government will try to introduce road safety classes in school.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/07/2005 09:30:00 am
Peter Ter Meulen the president of the International Road Safety Academy's regional center told a press conference yesterday that statistics showed that car accidents are the main cause of death for people under the age of 50.
The program will be initiated in Bucharest next week, with the help of the city hall, the government and other foreign partners.
Leading companies on the surveillance and control equipment market from Germany and the Netherlands will provide the required equipment to the Romanian police, such as radar devices.
The government will try to introduce road safety classes in school.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/07/2005 09:30:00 am
The American Chamber of Commerce in Romania (AmCham Romania) has a new board of directors.
AmCham re-elected Roberto Musneci of GlaxoSmithKline as chairman and General Electric's representative Dan Ionescu as vice-president at the end of March.
ABN Amro bank chairman Henk Mulder was appointed second vice-president, while Vasile Iuga, representative of the audit company PricewaterhouseCoopers is AmCham's new treasurer.
Other members of the new board of directors are Hewlett Packard's Radu Enache, Microsoft Romania president Silviu Hotaran, Obie Moore from law firm Salans, Citibank bank head Witold Zielinski and Rompetrol representative Philip Stephenson.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/07/2005 09:26:00 am
AmCham re-elected Roberto Musneci of GlaxoSmithKline as chairman and General Electric's representative Dan Ionescu as vice-president at the end of March.
ABN Amro bank chairman Henk Mulder was appointed second vice-president, while Vasile Iuga, representative of the audit company PricewaterhouseCoopers is AmCham's new treasurer.
Other members of the new board of directors are Hewlett Packard's Radu Enache, Microsoft Romania president Silviu Hotaran, Obie Moore from law firm Salans, Citibank bank head Witold Zielinski and Rompetrol representative Philip Stephenson.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/07/2005 09:26:00 am
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
French financial group BNP Paribas buys Credisson business in a deal of around 40 million euros.
The French group will buy all the shares in the biggest company specialising in consumer finance on the Romanian market through its Cetelem branch, which is ranked as the leading player on the consumer finance market in the euro zone.
The Credisson sale is considered one of the Romanian market's most spectacular transactions.
Credisson was the first consumer finance company to be established in Romania and was set up precisely because of the favourable macroeconomic conditions (the stabilisation of the exchange rate for domestic currency and the falling interest rates) and the growth potential of the market.
Credisson International SRL granted 105 million euros in loans last year, according to certain estimates, with turnover amounting to 12-12.5 million euros.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:36:00 pm
The French group will buy all the shares in the biggest company specialising in consumer finance on the Romanian market through its Cetelem branch, which is ranked as the leading player on the consumer finance market in the euro zone.
The Credisson sale is considered one of the Romanian market's most spectacular transactions.
Credisson was the first consumer finance company to be established in Romania and was set up precisely because of the favourable macroeconomic conditions (the stabilisation of the exchange rate for domestic currency and the falling interest rates) and the growth potential of the market.
Credisson International SRL granted 105 million euros in loans last year, according to certain estimates, with turnover amounting to 12-12.5 million euros.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:36:00 pm
Romania's sole domestically-owned hotel chain Continental Hotels said on Tuesday it chose a consortium made up of BRD Securities, Raiffeisen Capital & Investment and Alpha Finance to manage the listing of its shares on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB).
After the listing, scheduled for June, Continental will count on the clients of the three companies to subscribe for any subsequent issues of new shares or corporate bonds, Continental Hotels chairman and majority shareholder Radu Enache said in a statement.
The company has yet to decide how to make the listing, including whether to launch an initial public offering.
The chain includes four hotel operators, Continental, Continental Vest, Continental Nord and Dacia Continental, now being merged into one. Only Continental Vest is now listed on Romania's over-the-counter securities market RASDAQ.
The chain has 10 hotels in Romania under the Continental name and another one under the Ibis name, in partnership with French hotel group Accor.
It will open two more Ibis hotels this year.
The chain (www.continentalhotels.ro) plans to boost turnover by 23% this year, to 23 million euro ($30 million).
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:35:00 pm
After the listing, scheduled for June, Continental will count on the clients of the three companies to subscribe for any subsequent issues of new shares or corporate bonds, Continental Hotels chairman and majority shareholder Radu Enache said in a statement.
The company has yet to decide how to make the listing, including whether to launch an initial public offering.
The chain includes four hotel operators, Continental, Continental Vest, Continental Nord and Dacia Continental, now being merged into one. Only Continental Vest is now listed on Romania's over-the-counter securities market RASDAQ.
The chain has 10 hotels in Romania under the Continental name and another one under the Ibis name, in partnership with French hotel group Accor.
It will open two more Ibis hotels this year.
The chain (www.continentalhotels.ro) plans to boost turnover by 23% this year, to 23 million euro ($30 million).
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:35:00 pm
Romania's new centrist government said on Tuesday it was asking U.S. banks to lend funds needed to complete a controversial motorway being built by U.S. construction giant Bechtel.
The European Union, which Romania is to join in 2007, has slammed the 2.8 billion euro deal masterminded by the former ruling ex-communists because it was awarded without a tender, a move not allowed under EU rules.
Last week, centrist Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu said the project was not a priority for his cabinet, which was keen to build another road with EU backing because it is part of the wealthy bloc's European transport corridors.
The EU is sponsoring, through the European Investment Bank [EIB.UL], a motorway connecting Bucharest with the western city of Timisoara, at the border with Hungary, a road running almost parallel with the controversial Bechtel project.
Bechtel's four-lane, 415-km (258-mile) motorway, on which work started last June, is expected to be completed in 2012 and has been designed to link the Transylvanian city of Brasov with the town of Bors on the border with Hungary.
The review carried out by British firm Hyder Consulting Ltd said the price of the project was fair.
For 2005, the government had earmarked 360 million euros from the state budget for the motorway but the figure will have to be cut by about 100 million euros to reduce a ballooning budget deficit.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:33:00 pm
The European Union, which Romania is to join in 2007, has slammed the 2.8 billion euro deal masterminded by the former ruling ex-communists because it was awarded without a tender, a move not allowed under EU rules.
Last week, centrist Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu said the project was not a priority for his cabinet, which was keen to build another road with EU backing because it is part of the wealthy bloc's European transport corridors.
The EU is sponsoring, through the European Investment Bank [EIB.UL], a motorway connecting Bucharest with the western city of Timisoara, at the border with Hungary, a road running almost parallel with the controversial Bechtel project.
Bechtel's four-lane, 415-km (258-mile) motorway, on which work started last June, is expected to be completed in 2012 and has been designed to link the Transylvanian city of Brasov with the town of Bors on the border with Hungary.
The review carried out by British firm Hyder Consulting Ltd said the price of the project was fair.
For 2005, the government had earmarked 360 million euros from the state budget for the motorway but the figure will have to be cut by about 100 million euros to reduce a ballooning budget deficit.
Posted by Iulia Rasoiu : 4/06/2005 12:33:00 pm
Monday, April 04, 2005
While there is no major problem in getting resonable ammounts of cash out of your bank account, the situation changes when it comes to large ammounts.
It seems many Romanian banks have quite a tough procedure in allowing you to retreat large ammounts without prior notice of about 24 hours.
For example:
- At CEC you can take back ammounts up to 10 million lei.
- At Volksbank, you can get easily up to 30 million lei, with the regular 0,4% tax. But for ammounts that exceed this level you have to pay 1% tax, unless you give a prior 24 hours notice to the bank about your intention.
- At HVB and Banca Romaneasca you have to notify the bank 24 hours before taking out more than 10.000 EUR. For BCR and Daewoo Bank this level is set at 3.000 EUR.
What is even worse is that this is not generaly announced in the banks. Except for CEC, almost none of the banks has any information displayed about the maximum level you can extract at one time.
Do you know of similar practices in other countries? What is the banks' politics in this case in the EU?
Posted by Mihai : 4/04/2005 06:30:00 pm
It seems many Romanian banks have quite a tough procedure in allowing you to retreat large ammounts without prior notice of about 24 hours.
For example:
- At CEC you can take back ammounts up to 10 million lei.
- At Volksbank, you can get easily up to 30 million lei, with the regular 0,4% tax. But for ammounts that exceed this level you have to pay 1% tax, unless you give a prior 24 hours notice to the bank about your intention.
- At HVB and Banca Romaneasca you have to notify the bank 24 hours before taking out more than 10.000 EUR. For BCR and Daewoo Bank this level is set at 3.000 EUR.
What is even worse is that this is not generaly announced in the banks. Except for CEC, almost none of the banks has any information displayed about the maximum level you can extract at one time.
Do you know of similar practices in other countries? What is the banks' politics in this case in the EU?
Posted by Mihai : 4/04/2005 06:30:00 pm
About 24% of the people in Bucharest went yesterday to vote for the new mayor. The elections were due as Traian Basescu, elected in 2004 as Bucharest Mayor, has become president of Romania.
Adriean Videanu won yesterday, with about 53%, the place for being the mayor of Bucharest. His competitor, Marian Vanghelie, has been left far behind, having only about 30% of the votes.
Adriean Videanu represents the D.A. alliance in Romania and is seen as the natural succesor Basescu should have for the place of mayor of Bucharest.
You can find out more about Adriean Videanu HERE (romanian only).
The vote yerterday is considered to be one of the lowest in terms of presence of the population, with only 24% of the population comming to express their vote. I believe this reflects not necessarly the fact that people couldn't decide, they just didn't care. Which might be even worse.
Anywayz, it can easily be seen that the interest has been low throughout the entire political class, as none of the cadidates even bother to ask for an exit-poll.
Posted by Mihai : 4/04/2005 05:59:00 pm
Adriean Videanu won yesterday, with about 53%, the place for being the mayor of Bucharest. His competitor, Marian Vanghelie, has been left far behind, having only about 30% of the votes.
Adriean Videanu represents the D.A. alliance in Romania and is seen as the natural succesor Basescu should have for the place of mayor of Bucharest.
You can find out more about Adriean Videanu HERE (romanian only).
The vote yerterday is considered to be one of the lowest in terms of presence of the population, with only 24% of the population comming to express their vote. I believe this reflects not necessarly the fact that people couldn't decide, they just didn't care. Which might be even worse.
Anywayz, it can easily be seen that the interest has been low throughout the entire political class, as none of the cadidates even bother to ask for an exit-poll.
Posted by Mihai : 4/04/2005 05:59:00 pm
Sunday, April 03, 2005
Google inc is increasing the personal account limits on Gmail, their free e-mail serice, to 2 GB - and talk of adding more storage space over the coming months.
Only invited users can join Gmail but Google are expected to roll out the full service this month following the 1st year of service in beta mode.
The Google Gmail site says,
"Our plan is to continue growing your storage beyond 2GBs by giving you more space as we are able. We know that email will only become more important in people's lives, and we want Gmail to keep up with our users and their needs. From Gmail, you can expect more."
"Our goal is to make sure storage is no longer an issue for Web mail users," said Marissa Mayer, Google's director of consumer Web products.
Posted by Mihai : 4/03/2005 07:25:00 pm
Only invited users can join Gmail but Google are expected to roll out the full service this month following the 1st year of service in beta mode.
The Google Gmail site says,
"Our plan is to continue growing your storage beyond 2GBs by giving you more space as we are able. We know that email will only become more important in people's lives, and we want Gmail to keep up with our users and their needs. From Gmail, you can expect more."
"Our goal is to make sure storage is no longer an issue for Web mail users," said Marissa Mayer, Google's director of consumer Web products.
Posted by Mihai : 4/03/2005 07:25:00 pm
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Foreign Direct Investments at 5.1 billion euros in...
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