Snowfall And Blizzard Expected In Romania Sunday-Monday
Romanian meteorologists have issued yellow and orange code warnings for snowfall, blizzard, precipitations and frost, valid from Sunday evening until Monday evening, for the northern, central, southern and eastern parts of the country.
The orange code alert for snowfall, blizzard, mixed precipitations and frost is valid for the counties of Buzau, Vrancea, Braila, Ialomita, Galati, Vaslui, Bacau and the mountainous regions in the counties of Arges, Dambovita and Prahova.
The yellow code alert for snowfall, blizzard, mixed precipitations and frost is valid for the same timeframe, for capital Bucharest and 25 counties, namely, Ilfov, Giurgiu, Mehedinti, Dolj, Gorj, Olt, Teleorman, Valcea, Calarasi, Constanta, Tulcea, Neamt, Suceava, Botosani, Iasi, Bistrita-Nasaud, Mures, Harghita, Covasna, Brasov, Maramures, Sibiu, Alba, Hunedoara and Caras-Severin. (Adevarul)
Hypermarkets’ Unfair Competition Slashed Small Merchants’ Sales During Winter Holidays
Hypermarkets’ unfair competition during the winter holidays triggered lower sales for small merchants, said Cora Muntean, executive secretary of the National Association of Small and Medium-Sized Merchants in Romania (ANCMMR).
“The period of winter holidays has confirmed our fear that the situation of small and medium-sized merchants is becoming more and more serious, each and every day. Their sales have also gone up, but way below the level reported in the previous years,” said Muntean.
She added that this situation is due to the unfair competition of hypermarkets located downtown (and not in the outskirts, the way it happens in all countries that know how to protect their own merchants). (Jurnalul National)
Romania, Second Largest Wheat Exporter In Egypt
Egypt, the world’s largest wheat importer, has bought 2.9 million tons of wheat in the second half of 2014, Romania being the second largest market for procurement for the Egyptian authorities, with deliveries of 780,000 tons.
In the same period in 2013, Egypt purchased 3.1 million tons of wheat, according to Mamdouh Abdel-Fattah, Vice Chairman of Egypt’s General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), as quoted by Egyptian publication Ahram.
In the 2013/2014 fiscal year (ended June 30, 2014), Egypt bought a total 5.46 million tons of wheat. Local production stood at 3.7 million tons.
France was a major exporter of wheat in Egypt in the second half of 2014, with deliveries of about one million tons (36% of the total), followed by Romania with 780.000 tons (26.8%) and Russia with 765.000 tons (26.3%), according to Abdel-Fattah.
The Romanian wheat was purchased at prices of $255.88/ton and $263.35/ton, charges insurers not included. (Adevarul)
Political Parties, On Verge Of Financial Collapse After Costly Presidential Elections
Political parties in Romania are facing the worst financial situation of the last years, following this fall’s presidential elections in which they pumped nearly EUR7.2 million.
The parties have amassed historical debts due to campaign costs way above the revenues they could have obtained. (Romania Libera)
Iohannis Needs To Work In Tandem With Kövesi In Fight Against Corruption
Klaus Iohannis, who was elected Romania’s president following a campaign based on a platform of fighting corruption, will need to work in tandem with Laura Codruta Kövesi, the chief prosecutor of Romania’s National Anticorruption Agency, to succeed in this respect, American radio station NPR reports.
“To make headway, he’ll need to work in tandem with Laura Codruța Kövesi, who heads Romania’s National Anti-Corruption Directorate. She faces the tall task of rooting out graft that has plagued the country since the fall of communism in Eastern Europe 25 years ago,’ according to NPR.
Kövesi, a former teen basketball star with a tough-as-nails reputation, said the legacy of her prosecutor father and her strong Romanian Orthodox faith inspire her to seek justice. Kövesi also said her agency sent some 890 defendants to trial, including former ministers, parliament members and even the ex-president’s brother and the head of Romania’s organized crime and terrorism investigation unit.
Iohannis won a surprising victory last month over the ruling party’s nominee, Victor Ponta. Iohannis, 55, was sworn into office on Sunday, December 21. (Adevarul)