Dragnea Says Will Resign All Positions In Convicted In Referendum Case
Social Democratic Party executive president Liviu Dragnea, who is also a minister in the Ponta Cabinet, said he will resign all public positions if convicted Friday in the referendum case.
The court is expected to give a ruling in the case where Dragnea is accused of defrauding a referendum poll. The trial started 17 months ago. (Adevarul)
Romania’s Economy Grows Above Expectations In First Quarter
Romania’s gross domestic product grew 1.6% in real terms in the first quarter compared with the previous three-month period, a flash estimate of the country’s statistics institute INS said Wednesday.
Against the first quarter of 2014, the GDP growth was 4.3%, and 4.2% in seasonally adjusted data.
The economic evolution in the first quarter is sensibly better than expectations, as analysts predicted a GDP growth of 2.5%-3%.
During the first three months of 2015, the growth pace accelerated from a 2.7% annual growth in the fourth quarter of 2014. (Adevarul)
88% Of Bank Clients In Urban Areas Use A Current Account
88% of bank customers in urban areas use a current account and 87% of current account holders use them to get their salaries, according to a study by Mercury Research for ING Bank Romania.
The study was conducted in November–December 2014.
“Of these, only 35% chose the bank to open their salary account, regardless of their employer,” said bank officials, adding the most important criteria are the level of taxes and fees (26%), the bank’s reputation (26%) and competitive lending condistions (15%). (Puterea)
Government To Write Off Tax Debt From Freelance Activities
The government will write off tax obligations resulted from the tax authority’s interpretation of independent activities, which occurred until June 1, 2015 and have not been paid.
The government will also write off unpaid health contributions for people whose monthly income calculation base is lower than the minimum wage for the period January 2012 – December 2014. (Romania Libera)
CO2 Emission Levels In Earth’s Atmosphere Hit Record High In March
Global average concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere reached a new record high in March 2015, soaring to surpass 400 parts per million, scientists revealed on Wednesday.
The news came as a reminder that the international community has failed to come up with meaningful solutions to reverse the trend in greenhouse gas emissions that are a direct cause of global warming.
Current global emissions would have to be reduced by a momentous 80% in order to stop carbon dioxide concentration in its upward trend. Even if emissions came to a halt altogether, it would likely take hundreds, if not thousands, of years for concentration levels to come back down to desirable rates. (Romania Libera)