What the newspapers say: May 12, 2009

Romania’s Interior minister is currently under scrutiny for variations between two wealth statements he gave in a period of two months. Elsewhere in the news, Romanian companies plan to reduce their personnel by a third in 2009, according to a survey. Romania’s imports recorded a drop of over 35% in the first quarter of 2009, one newspaper reads. Last but not least, high international demand in ammunition and hunting armament makes two profile factories prosper in times of recession.

Gandul reads that Romanian Interior minister Dan Nica has attracted Romania’s National Integrity Agency’s attention after a Romanian weekly, Academia Catavencu, published an investigation regarding dissimilarities between the two declarations of wealth he has given in December 2008 and in February 2009.

The Romanian Interior minister received a villa in Galati at the completion of the last mandate, from a certain Valentin Mititelu, the newspaper reads, quoting another paper, Gardianul. The property had been initially owned by the minister’s parents-in-law and godson before Valentin Mititelu got hold of it in 2005, the newspapers states.

Gandul goes on to say that ANI investigators found further defalcations in Dan Nica’s wealth statement: the vice prime-minister declared in December 2008 an income of 50,097 lei, earned as deputy in 2007, the same amount that he declared this February for 2008, although his position had changed. The Interior minister is currently under ANI’s investigation.

One third of Romanian companies will reduce their personnel in 2009, according to a study performed by the research company Hewitt Associates, Evenimentul Zilei reads. The study shows that 41% of Romanian companies reduced the salaries’ budget for this year.

41% of the interviewed companies admitted to a lower staff expenditure budget in contrast with 2008. The study was carried out this spring and it involved 61 Romanian companies, both multinationals and local.

Romania’s imports recorded a drop of over 35% in the first quarter of 2009 while exports are 19.4% lower, Adevarul reads. According to Romania’s National Prognosis Institute, the country’s imports and exports amount to a total of 15.1 billions euro, 5 billions less than in the same quarter of 2008. Romania’s exports in the European Union record a 15% drop in the first 2009 quarter, while imports from EU saw a 32.8% decline.

Cars and transport vehicles remain the most exported Romanian products, amounting to 40% of the total exports, followed by fuels (6.5%) and food, drinks and tobacco (5.7%), the paper goes on. The gap between exports and imports sees a 60% reductions in the first 2009 quarter, which means a lower commercial deficit: 1.9 billion euros, 3.1 billion euros lower than the commercial deficit for the first quarter of 2008. Adevarul reads the sudden drop in commercial deficit is a sign of the economy going through recession.

High international demand in ammunition and hunting armament makes two profile factories prosper in times of recession, Romania Libera reads. The newspaper quotes documents sent by SC UM Cugir SA and SC Fabrica de Arme SA to Romanian National amunition and arms Company Romarm, declaring they hired some 250 extra staff in order to cope with the demands.

UM Cugir has to honour ammunition orders worth of approximately 10 millions euro, while SC Fabrica de Arme SA will produce hunting armament worth of 6 millions euros. The manager of the two companies, Radu Rosian, declared the companies will choose the personnel from among staff sacked in the past.