● MONDAY, April 15

Veaceslav Negruța: Production of cryptocurrency in Transnistria exerts pressure on leu

The production of cryptocurrency in the Transnistrian region exerts pressure on the national currency of the Republic of Moldova, stated Transparency International Moldova expert Veaceslav Negruță. According to him, the National Bank of Moldova should provide more relevant information given that the leu does not circulate in the Transnistrian region and this is a problem. “In this case, by cryptocurrency they create additional pressure on the Moldovan leu. For small economies like the Republic of Moldova, such “sucking devices” placed in unknown areas where the law does not work, the risk is that the whole economy could be blocked overnight if the “sucking device” extracts everything on which the economy is based,” the expert stated.

Over 2,000 loans provided to beneficiaries of “First House” program

More than 2,000 home loans to the value of about 1 billion lei were released to young families and unmarried young people as part of the governmental program “First House”. The state guarantees totaled about 500 million lei. Of the 2,000 beneficiaries, 1,450 are young families, while 550 are unmarried young people. The average age of the applicants is 31, while the average price of a home is approximately 580,000 lei. Of all the bought homes, 1,873 are satiated in towns, while 127 in villages.

Fines of 42m lei imposed on employers that use illegal labor

The employers in Moldova last year were fined a total of 42 million lei for using illegal labor. Of this sum over, over 15.6 million lei was paid. The data of the State Tax Service were presented within the Economic Council working under the Prime Minister in the meeting of the working group for reducing informal employment and the illegal payment of salaries. According to the representative of the State Tax Service Nicoleta Nimerenco, 193 cases of use of illegal labor or illegal payment of salaries were identified in 2018. In the first nine months of the year, the employers declared a monthly salary fund of 3.9 billion lei, while in October – December the salary fund rose to 4.5 billion lei a month. This January the salary fund was 4.451 billion lei.

Country’s economic failures are due to lack of unitary approach, expert

The Republic of Moldova didn’t have and doesn’t have a unitary approach, a synergy of the budgetary, economic, monetary and commercial polices and this state of affairs results in constant economic failures, economic expert Viorel Gârbu stated. The expert said the most recent International Monetary Fund forecast anticipates an economic growth rate of 3.5% in Moldova for 2019. Even if the indicator is positive, this is the lowest economic growth rate for the group of the poorest countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States that includes Moldova, according to the IMF rankings.

● TUESDAY, April 16

Financial system should be a key element for next government, experts

The financial system in the Republic of Moldova should become a solid source of protection for the consumers of financial services, a stability factor for public finances and a generator of credibility for the international community. No matter what political color prevails in the next government, the financial system should remain a key element of the government plan, with priorities based on the further implementation of the reforms done so far and on the crystallization of new development and modernization directions. The recommendations can be found in the Financial Monitor that was presented by the Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” on April 16. The experts said the current tendencies in the financial system are greatly determined by the reforms done in the banking sector after the crisis of 2014-2015. Launched in the form of stabilization measures aimed, among others, at resuming the cooperation with the main foreign partners, these were continued as actions to review and adjust the legislation. The government assumed a large part of these actions under the Memorandum with the IMF, which laid special emphasis on the ensuring of bank shareholder transparency and strengthening of the corporate governance mechanism. Also, the switchover to the regulatory and supervision standards Basel III was launched according to the calendar negotiated as part of the Association Agreement with the EU and envisions the meeting of new requirements concerning capital adequacy, transactions with affiliates, risk assessment and management, regime of penalties and others.

● WEDNESDAY, April 17

Roman Chircă: Exaggerated panic is created around recent depreciation of leu

The director of the Market Economy Institute Roman Chircă said exaggerated panic is created around the depreciation of the leu witnessed the past few days and the currency market speculators are waiting for such fuss. The economic expert said such a fluctuation is slightly more worrisome than normally. Roman Chircă noted there are particular preconditions, such as the increased demand for currency and the political instability in the Republic of Moldova. Journalistic Eduard Robu said Moldova’s economy is a ‘seasonal’ one. They buy more resources for heating in winter and, respectively, the demand for currency is greater. In spring, important quantities of fuel are purchased for agricultural works and currency is needed again. In summer, the remittances from Moldovans who work abroad increase in value, while in autumn the exports of agricultural products are larger.

Domestic foreign currency market is at temporary readjustment stage, central bank

The National Bank of Moldova said the foreign currency market of Moldova is now at a temporary readjustment stage, the volatility and pace of depreciation against the reference currency, the euro, being closely monitored. In a press statement, the NBM said the euro on the foreign financial markets has lately appreciated against the dollar amid the evolutions of the macroeconomic indicators in the Eurozone. Respectively, in April the European common currency increased in value from 1.1218 EUR/USD to 1.1300 EUR/USD and the trend explains the depreciation of the leu against the euro.

Travel agencies report rises of up to 40% in demand for city breaks

The city breaks or mini-vacations in urban places become increasingly popular with Moldovan tourists. Some of the travel agencies last year witnessed a 20%-40% growth on this segment. Cities in Romania, Italy, France, Turkey, Greece, Austria or Spain are the most popular destinations. Mariana Grajdeanu, manager of the travel agency Panda Tur, said the mini-vacations in the Ukrainian cities Odessa and Lvov and in the Romanian cities Brasov and Sinaya are very popular. A two- or three-day vacation costs €39 to €169 a person and includes accommodation, transport to and from by bus, guide services and health insurance. As regards the accommodation, most of the Moldovan tourists chose three-star hotels.

Easter baked goods to hit stores later this week

The traditional Easter braided bread pasca, the sweet bread cozonac, and the nut roll învârtita will become available for purchase already at the end of this week, and pastry manufacturers also promise novelties this season. “This year’s novelty is a sweet bread with chocolate and natural coffee”, Corina Oncean, manager of the bakery “Bon Appetit”, told. The brand’s goods will be available in specialized shops, in the retail network Fourchette, at the Central Market and at traditional Easter fairs. Olga Andronic, representative of the patisserie “Colibri”, says their Easter offer will reach the shelves on April 22. The most expensive product will be the Italian panettone cakes, priced at around 140 lei. Other Easter products from Colibri also includes gingerbread, choclate, cherry and poppy seed cakes, cheese-filled braided cakes and rolls with various fillings. Franzeluța, Moldova’s largest bread and baked goods manufacturer, has already made available for sale gingerbread figures and a variety of panettone cakes, and by the end of this week its offer will be complete with traditional recipe cakes.

Palm Sunday Fair to open at Moldexpo

A new edition of the Palm Sunday Fair, where people can buy Easter presents, will take place during April 19-23 at Moldexpo. More than 100 vendors will sell decorated Easter eggs, sweets, cakes and pasca, as well as hand-made products with Easter symbols, decorations, flowers, and seedlings and saplings. On Saturday, at 12:00, a master class will be held for children aged over five, who will learn to crochet Easter eggs and bunnies. And on Sunday, starting at 12:00, patisserie chef Maria Macari will hold a cooking workshop to reveal the secrets of long-forgotten dishes.

● THURSDAY, April 18

Authorized regular bus routes to Italy to launch in two weeks

Five passenger transport operators have already been authorized to operate regular bus routes from Moldova to Italy, with applications from 30 more companies awaiting approval. The routes will launch no later than in two weeks, authorities say. The intention to have regular routes to Italy was announced two years ago. MoE state secretary Serghei Bucataru said the long wait has been due to required legal amendments. The Moldova-Italy joint commission on international road haulage and passenger transportation, meeting in Chisinau during April 16 and 17, has coordinated procedures to facilitate the routes’ opening.

Checks show tomatoes and cucumbers on sale do not contain more nitrates than allowed

The levels of nitrates and pesticide residues in the cucumbers, tomatoes and radish sold in authorized retail outlets do not exceed the norms, showed the checks carried out by inspectors of the National Food Safety Agency when these products appeared on the market. Radu Musteață, division head at the Agency, said none of the 30 samples taken for checks so far was noncompliant. Even so, the consumes should attentively choose the places from which to buy such products as these should be authorized and supervised by the Agency. In accordance with the program to monitor the pesticide residues and nitrates in vegetal products for 2019, the National Food Safety Agency will take 400 samples for determining the level of pesticide residues and 272 samples for establishing the nitrate level.

● FRIDAY, April 19

Moldovans prefer second-hand Toyotas, Dacias, VWs

The top three vehicle brands imported last year into Moldova were Toyota, Dacia, and Volkswagen, in this order, whereas ten years ago the most preferred brands were Mercedes, Volkswagen, and Renault. Last year, Moldova imported 34,700 vehicles; 27,000 of them were automobiles, by over nine thousand more than in 2010. The Public Services Agency said that Germany has remained the leading country of origin, and whereas in 2010 it was followed by the Netherlands and Italy, last year it was Switzerland and France, respectively.

Central bank extends mandate of Moldindconbank temporary administrators

The executive committee of the National Bank of Moldova has decided to extend for a period of six months the mandate of Moldindconbank’s temporary administrators. Temporary administrators were appointed to manage the commercial bank as part of an early intervention regime imposed by the NBM in 2016 in an attempt to combat illegal concerted practices and achieve ownership transparency.

● SATURDAY, April 20

Over 1,000 tenancy agreements registered so far this year

More than 1,000 private individuals during the first three months of this year registered over 1,000 tenancy agreements with local Fiscal Service Divisions, quoting the State Tax Service. In the period, the tax inspectors examined 150 private individuals who lease out real estate, the budget being supplemented with 126,400 lei basic payments, 5,500 lei penalties and 27,100 lei fines. The State Tax Service recommends the persons who provide residence to comply with the fiscal legislation and to pay the tax of 7% of the obtained revenues. The income tax should be paid by the date of 2 of each month or in advance.