Attending the regional banking conference organized in Vienna by Euromoney magazine, Voinea said that the country reported the lowest current account deficit ever, ended 2013 with the lowest budget deficit since entering the EU, issues state bonds at historical low yields, and it reported the lowest annual inflation ever. Nevertheless, the macroeconomic improvement has not lifted the appetite for consumption.
The minister added that “it is time we switched from quantitative to qualitative adjustment”.
“The simple cutting is not a policy. We can cut expenditures to zero, but we will see that things are not working. The government should play a role in solving the demand deficit issue, keeping at the same time the fiscal consolidation. They can be done concomitantly.”
Voinea expressed his confidence that this year’s economic growth would exceed the forecast of 2.2%.
On the other hand, Voinea said that the countries in the region have two valuable growth drivers: structural reforms and EU funds – while Romania is still far from reaching its potential.