“Post-program surveillance will now start and will involve semi-annual visits to assess the economic, fiscal and financial situation of the country until May 2018,” the Commission said Wednesday.
In addition to post-program surveillance, the Commission will continue its close cooperation with the Romanian authorities in the context of the European Semester (a cycle for the implementation of the EU’s economic rules) and the fiscal and macroeconomic surveillance frameworks.
Romania had a precautionary agreement with the European Commission, whereby the Commission guaranteed a EUR2 billion credit line under the balance of payments program. The program, which ran in the period 2013-2015, ran in parallel with an International Monetary Fund stand-by arrangement for a similar guaranteed credit line.
The Romanian government did not access any funding from the EC or IMF under the agreements.
“The program (…) provided support to Romania to consolidate its macroeconomic, fiscal and financial stability, increase the resilience and growth potential of its economy, enhance administrative capacity, reform the tax administration, improve public financial management and restructure state-owned enterprises,” the Commission said.
Romania’s IMF agreement expired on September 26. The country has reached its economic indicator goals but has missed structural reform targets, Guillermo Tolosa, IMF Resident Representative in Romania, said mid-September.
Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici said Tuesday Romania will officially ask the IMF for a new loan agreement this year and negotiations will focus on implementing structural reforms rather than reigning in the country’s budget deficit.