Labor Inspection Applied Fines Worth Over RON3M Between 24 And 28 March
Romania’s Labor Inspection applied fines worth over RON3 million between March 24 and 28, following a series of checkups.
Checkups revealed 318 cases of illegal work and 676 employers were penalized. (Curierul National)
RMGC To Sack Nearly 80% Of Employees
Rosia Montana Gold Corporation (RMGC) said in a statement sent to news agency Mediafax that it will sack nearly 80% of employees due to downsizing its activity.
Around 1,000 families in the Apuseni mining area (western Romania) will be affected by this measure.
The Rosia Montana ore is evaluated at some 300 tons of gold and 1,600 tons of silver. The project was launched in 1997 and plans to open the gold mine have been on and off for the past 14 years because of environmental concerns entailed by cyanide mining.
RMGC, the joint venture set up to develop the project, is 80.69% controlled by Canadian mining company Gabriel Resources, while the rest is held by the Romanian state through mining company Minvest. (Romania Libera)
Romania Forex Reserves Down To EUR31.3B In March
Romanian foreign exchange reserves fell to EUR31.27 billion in March, from EUR31.65 billion a month earlier, central bank data showed Tuesday.
Foreign exchange inflows declined to EUR1.73 billion in March, from EUR2.37 billion in the previous month, while total outflows fell to EUR2.1 billion, from EUR3.63 billion in February.
The central bank’s gold holdings were steady at 103.7 metric tons, but their value adjusted for international gold price slid to EUR3.13 billion, from EUR3.2 billion in January. (Curentul)
Romania Should Wait Until 2015 To Cut Social Security Tax – IMF
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday said Romania should probably wait at least until next year to lower the level of social security contributions, but expressed its openness to earlier discussions if the government finds additional resources to fuel the state budget.
“A reduction by five percentage points of the social security tax would have a very important impact for the budget deficit and the pension system, so the 2015 budget discussions are probably the most appropriate timing for that,” said Andrea Schaechter, IMF mission chief for Romania.
Romania is considering cutting social security contributions by up to five percentage points in a move to decrease the burden on labor.
While the IMF supports the initiative, the government should start by identifying new sources to improve revenue collection before implementing the measure, Schaechter said. (Adevarul)
Romania and Ukraine Seal Small-Scale Cross-Border Traffic Agreement
The Romanian and Ukrainian foreign affairs ministers concluded Tuesday in Brussels the small-scale cross-border traffic agreement between the two countries, according to news agency Mediafax.
The agreement, which is to be signed after Ukraine has completed its internal state procedures, allows the citizens of the two countries, who live in a well-defined area nearby the common border, to travel in that given area of the two countries without any visas or passports, only based on small-scale cross-border traffic. (Adevarul)