ECO-BUS WEEKLY DIGEST March 9-15. Most important Economy & Business news by IPN

● MONDAY, March 9

Motor insurance policy: for whom it is mandatory and what situations it covers

Any person who has a motor vehicle is obliged to purchase a third party liability motor insurance policy. There are a number of such policies and some of them are mandatory, while others are optional and cover different types of risks or are valid in particular geographic areas. The information was published by the National Bank of Moldova as part of the information campaign carried out in concert with the National Commission for Financial Markets in the framework of the financial education project “Learn. Give Sense to Money”. The civil liability insurance for motor vehicles is a mandatory insurance policy valid on the territory of the Republic of Moldova. The Green Card is an insurance policy that is mandatory for owners of motor vehicles involved in international traffic and protects third parties as a result of road accidents outside the country. CASCO is optional and covers damage caused to the own motor vehicle on Moldova’s territory and in other countries. The damage can be caused not only in traffic accidents, but also by natural factors, such as hail or storm. The CASCO policy is purchased in addition to the civil liability insurance or the Green Card.

PPPDA says subsidies in agriculture should represent 3% of budget costs

The MPs of the Party “Dignity and Truth Platform” (PPPDA) registered in Parliament a bill to amend the law on the principles of subsidization in agriculture and rural development. This provides that the subsidies in agriculture will represent at least 3% of the state budget expenditure. In a news conference, PPPDA MP Alexandru Slusari said the bill was drafted as a result of consultations with a number of farmers organizations following approaches made by these. If the quota of 3% was set by law, the Subsidization Fund at present would be of about 1.6 billion lei.

● TUESDAY, March 10

Fuel prices decreased again

After the fuels a month ago were cheapened by 0.30-0.40 lei a liter, a number of filling stations on March 10 posted again lower fuel prices. A liter of gasoline and of diesel fuel costs by 1 leu less on average, while a liter of liquefied petroleum gas - by about 0.30 lei less. The price of a liter of gasoline classed 95 ranges between 17.42 lei and 17.55 lei, as opposed to 18.42-18.55 lei a day ago. The diesel fuel is now sold for 15.32 – 15.50 lei/liter, in contrast to 16.22-16.40 lei. The liquefied petroleum gas costs 10.15 to 10.25 lei a litter, as against 10.45-10.55 lei earlier.

Electricity charge decreased, tariff for heat supplied by “Termoelectrica” remains unchanged

The Administration Board of the National Agency for Energy Regulation (NAER) approved a 27% reduction in the charge for electricity produced by “Termoelectrica” SA to 116 bani/kWh (without VAT). It also maintained the tariff of 1,122 lei/Gcal (without VAT) for the heat supplied to consumers. In the negotiations, the NAER examined the calculations and materials presented by “Termoelectrica” and agreed to partially include positive tariff deviations of 35.418 million lei in the calculation of the price of the produced electricity and negative financial deviations of 93.556 million lei in the calculation of the tariff for heat supplied to consumers.

● WEDNESDAY, March 11

Ambassador Katayama Yoshihiro: Moldovan-Japanese partnership has a solid foundation

“I believe the Moldo-Japanese partnership has a solid foundation, based on such universal values as democracy, the rule of law, market economy, and respect for human rights. Their fortification allows us to deepen the bilateral relations and obtain more tangible results. I would like to express my appreciation for the efforts towards the European integration as well as hope that the Republic of Moldova will continue to produce successes in this direction,” Japan’s Ambassador to Moldova Katayama Yoshihiro stated on the occasion of the National Day Reception held to celebrate the Birthday of His Majesty the Emperor Naruhito. The diplomat noted that among the diverse forms of economic assistance, a special place is occupied by the support to the agricultural sector. ”I have a pleasure to mention that over 40% of modern agricultural equipment used in Moldova has been purchased with the Japanese grants. ‘Kusanone’ Human Security Program has also become well known in all the corners of Moldova. In 2019 alone we offered over US$ 700,000 to various projects in education and healthcare,” stated Katayama Yoshihiro.

Air Moldova halts all flights to and from Italy

Air Moldova decided to suspend all the flights to and from Italy for the period between March 12 and 31, with the possibility of extending the restrictions. The airline said the measures come as a result of the Moldova authorities’ decision to suspend air traffic with Italy. “The measures were taken to prevent the spread of infection with COVID-19. We understand the concern of the passengers who planned to fly in the nearest future. This way, Air Moldova allows them to gratis change the date of the flights scheduled for March ‪12-31 for a period of 30 days of the date of resumption of flights to and from Italy,” the airline said in a press release.

NBM urges to use cashless payment methods

The National Bank of Moldova (NBM) encourages the citizens to use cashless payment methods, such as Internet applications and mobile payments, secure e-commerce payments and the cards for paying for goods and services at retail outlets. These methods are more hygienic than the cash use and represent a good practice for preventing the spread of communicable diseases, including the COVID-19 virus. In a press release, the NBM says the avoidance or limitation of the contact with money circulating from hand to hand can have significant effects on the protection of everyone’s health.

Government introduces temporary restrictions on export of medical masks

Medical face masks and gloves and medical disinfectants cannot be exported until April 15, as it is provided by a Government decision approved on March 11. The decision was taken in connection with the spread of the infection with COVID-19.

Bans on import of poultry from Ukraine lifted

One month after banning the import of poultry and poultry products from Ukraine, the restrictions were lifted. The Government on March 11 decided to abrogate the decision approved in the middle of last month in a bid to prevent an eventual introduction of bird flu into Moldova.

● THURSDAY, March 12

IMF Executive Board completes sixth and final review of Moldova’s ECF and EFF

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the sixth and final review of Moldova’s economic performance under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) and Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangements. The Board also concluded the 2020 Article IV Consultation with Moldova. “The negotiations we held with the team of the International Monetary Fund in February 2020 and the fulfillment of the assumed commitments enabled us to successfully complete the existing program and to lay the basis of a new program. Following this decision, the country during the next few days will benefit from consistent financial support,” Prime Minister Ion Chicu posted on Facebook.

Soil moisture reserves are lowest in southern Moldova

The moisture reserves formed last autumn in arable land are the lowest in the southern districts of the country. In this region, the reserves constitute 10-20 mm in parts, according to the latest checks of March 8. In the layer of soil that is 1 meter thick, this indicator varies between 50 and 80 mm. The reference soil moisture norm is 130 mm. Gennady Roșca, head of the Meteorological Forecasts Division of the State Hydrometeorological Service, has told that the last examinations showed the moisture reserves in arable land in the northern districts range between 25 and 45 mm. In the layer of soil with a thickness of under 1 meter, these vary between 75 and 120 de mm.

“Avia Invest” asked to present cost basis for airport charges

The Civil Aeronautic Authority requested concessionaire “Avia Invest” SRL to present the cost basis for the charges of airport services for 2020. According to the Authority, the request was made as a result of the elimination of inconsistencies from the regulatory framework in 2019 and the recommendations formulated by the Court of Auditors in an audit concerning compliance of the signing and execution of provisions of the public-private partnership contract. In a press release, the Authority said the implementation of the given methodology will ensure transparency when calculating the airport charges levied at the Chisinau International Airport. This will also ensure the protection of the interests of users of airport services and passengers and will contribute to increasing the accessibility of air transport services.

Card payments in Moldova last year exceeded 10bn lei, economist

Economist of the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives “Viitorul” Veaceslav Ioniţă estimates that the card payments in Moldova in 2019 exceeded 10 billion lei, even if the data for the whole last year are not yet available. The estimates confirm the hypothesis that the payments with cards double once in two years. In an analysis that is quoted by IPN, the economist said the Moldovans start to feel “the taste” of payments with bank cards. In 2020, these payments are expected to exceed 16 billion lei, which is 37 times more than ten years ago. “We estimate that the total card payments made by the Moldovans in 2019 amount to 17.5 billion lei, 10.3 billion lei of which in Moldova and 7.2 billion lei outside the country,” stated the economist.

● FRIDAY, March 13

Chisinau – Iași train route suspended until April 2

The Chisinau – Iași (Socola) train will not run in the period between March 14 and April 2. The route is suspended due to the low number of passengers. According to the spokesman for Moldova’s Railways Constantin Olteanu, the persons who bought tickets for this period can return them to the company’s box offices.

First tranche of Russian loan likely to reach Moldova early in April

The first tranche of the loan provided by the Russian Federation to Moldova will be transferred to the state budget account at the beginning of April. The other tranche will be disbursed when it is asked for, Prime Minister Ion Chicu was saying in a news conference. The official said that today the Cabinet held a meeting so as to delegate the power to sign the lending agreement to Moldova’s Ambassador to Russia Andrei Neguța. The signing procedure will take place the next few days. Later, the document will be ratified by the governments and parliaments of the two states.