● MONDAY, June 19
Farmers from a number of localities go to protest in Chisinau with agricultural machinery
The farmers from a number of localities are heading for the capital city with agricultural machinery to protest. In the afternoon, the tractors are expected to get to four locations: near the South Bus Terminal, at the Airport, at the Meteor Center and in Stăuceni commune. Other farmers will take their agricultural machines to a number of national roads at about 11am, IPN reports, quoting a note from the Association “Force of Farmers”.
Even after slight depreciation, Moldovan leu remains strong
The Moldovan leu last week depreciated slightly against the main currencies. Even after a slight depreciation of 0.3% during June 12-18, the leu is by 7.8% stronger than at the beginning of the year against the main ten currencies of the countries with which Moldova has the most intense commercial relations, said economic expert of the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives “Viitorul” Veaceslav Ioniță, who analyzed data of the National Bureau of Statistics.
Authorities aim to reduce taxes for airlines by down to 70%
The authorities worked out a new tariff policy that can reduce airport taxes by down to 70% for airlines, depending on the number of transported passengers and the number of new routes, said PAS MP Radu Marian, who noted that the gradual removal of the modernization tax was announced. This way, as from July 1, the total taxes will decrease from €21 to €16, while from January 1 next year to €12 plus different reductions.
Government in talks with farmers
The Government earlier allocated an extra 533 million lei in support of the farmers affected by the regional economic crisis and is taking measures to identify other solutions to substitute exports and to compensate the farmers for the sustained losses, Prime Minister Dorin Recean announced in a new round of discussions with representatives of the Association “Force of Farmers”, which involved Deputy Premier Vladimir Bolea, Minister of Agriculture.
Moldovagaz sends calculated common payment to consumers that want another supplier
Moldovagaz has transmitted the calculated common payment to end users that want to replace the supplier or to terminate the contract for the supply of natural gas, which is designed to ensure an equitable mechanism for recovering the financial deviations. The calculations were done according to the formula stipulated in the May 31 decision of the Commission for Exceptional Situations.
Farmers set tractor protests in motion
Farmers from Sângerei, Fălești, Edineț, Ștefan Vodă, Căușeni and other districts have taken to the streets riding tractors and other agricultural machinery, with some of them marching towards Chisinau.
● TUESDAY, June 20
Number of millionaires goes up. Youngest millionaire is 19, oldest one is 82
As many as 4, 810 persons obtained incomes of over 1 million lei last year, up about 800 taxpayers on a year before. The highest income declared by a private individual was 43.8 million lei. The youngest millionaire is 19, while the oldest one is 82. The data were presented by the director of the State Tax Service Petru Rotaru in a news conference.
Base rate on main monetary policy operations decreased
The Executive Board of the National Bank of Moldova (NBM) decided to reduce the base rate applied to the main short-term monetary policy operations to 6%, down from 10%. Interest rates on overnight loans and deposits were set at 8% and, respectively, 5% annually, down by 4 percentage points in both of the cases.
The mandatory reserves attracted in Moldovan lei and in non-convertible currency were kept at 34% of the calculation basis, while the mandatory reserves attracted in freely convertible currency at 45% of the calculation basis.
● WEDNESDAY, June 21
Vasile Grădinaru: Farmers’ protest looks like political action
The protest mounted by farmers who brought their agricultural machinery in front of the Government Building seems to be a political action and a new party called “Force of Farmers” could soon appear on the political arena of the Republic of Moldova, said PAS MP Vasile Grădinaru. He expressed his bewilderment at the fact that out of all the agricultural associations, only one is dissatisfied. For his part, ex-minister of agriculture Ion Sula, chairman of the European Social Democratic Party, said the eventual bankruptcy of agricultural producers will endanger the country’s food security.
Moldova to raise US$100m loan from Japan
The Cabinet approved the signing of a loan agreement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency. It goes to a loan of 13.5 billion Japanese yen, which is equal to about US$100 million. The money will be used to implement development policies.
Employees’ costs for alternative childcare services to be subsidized
The costs incurred by employees for alternative care services for children younger than three inclusive will be subsidized with 2,500 lei a month for a child. The payment will not be taxed, as a bill approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday provides.
NAER increases trade margin on retail of oil products
The National Agency For Energy Regulation (NAER) has raised the specific trade margin on the retail of the main oil products of standard type for the second half of 2023. This will be of 3.08 lei/liter, up from 2.91 lei/liter in the first half of this year.
Ceiling on taxable income on which personal exemption is provided to be raised
The ceiling on the annual taxable income obtained by private individuals will rise from 360,000 lei to 720,000 lei for these to benefit from the right to use personal exemption, says a bill to amend a number of normative documents referring to the fiscal and customs policy which was approved by the Government. According to the Ministry of Finance, the ceiling is adjusted to the latest economic realities.
Lawyer urges people to demand their rights following FlyOne flight cancellations
Lawyer Stanislav Ciobanu says that FlyOne shows “a systematic failure to fulfill its obligations and protect passengers” in the context of repeated flight delays and cancellations. He urges passengers who have suffered as a result of the airline’s alleged inaction to claim their rights and demand compensation.
● THURSDAY, June 22
Alexandru Slusari: When European funds come, there will be no one who to be saved
The European Union accepted the idea that agriculture in Moldova is seriously affected by the consequences of the war in Ukraine and the state can receive assistance from the foreign partners to help the famers, said the leader of the protesting farmers Alexandru Slusari. According to the executive director of the Association “Force of Farmers”, the farmers asked the Government to pay subsidies from the state budget to them and to later use the money provided by the EU, but the authorities rejected such a scenario.
Entrepreneurs can apply for investment loans within “373” program from today
Entrepreneurs can ask for investment loans of up to 15 million lei from commercial banks that are partners of the governmental program “373” as from today, June 22, Deputy Prime Minister Dumitru Alaiba, Minister of Economic Development and Digitization, stated in a news conference.
According to the program’s concept, the interest rate on loans in foreign currencies is 3%, while on loans in lei is 7%. For loans repayable in seven years, the grace period is at most three years. Investment loans with interest rate that is partially covered by the state through the Organization for Entrepreneurship Development (ODA) can be raised from one of the 11 commercial banks of Moldova.
Bank deposit guarantee ceiling to be doubled
The bank deposit guarantee ceiling this year will be doubled to 100,000 lei, while in 2025 it will be raised to 200,000 lei, as a bill that was given a final reading by Parliament provides.
EU invests €250m in crossborder connections between Ukraine, Moldova and their EU neighbors
The EU will invest €6.2 billion in sustainable, safe and efficient transport infrastructure projects across Europe. Out of this sum, €250 million will be allocated for crossborder connections between Ukraine, Moldova and their EU neighbors, IPN reports, quoting a press release of the European Commission.
● FRIDAY, June 23
EU invests in crossborder infrastructure of Moldova and Romania
The European Commission decided that the three Moldova-Romanian projects that applied for financing through the Connecting Europe Facility will be funded, the Customs Service said in a press release.
The projects are aimed at developing road and customs infrastructure at border crossing points. This way, there will be build the infrastructure of the Ungheni (MD) - Ungheni (RO) customs post, modernized the Leușeni-Albița (freight section) customs post and modernized the Giurgiulești – Galați customs post.
Moldova borrows €120 million for energy sector
The Republic of Moldova will raise a €120 million loan from the French Development Agency in preferential conditions. The money will go to do reforms in the energy sector. The first tranche of €40 million will be disbursed towards the end of this year. Furthermore, Moldova will get €5 million in grant funding from the European Union. This is provided in the Memorandum of Understanding for reforming the energy sector which was signed today by the French Development Agency and four ministries of Moldova.
Owners could clear foreign-plated cars with 70% discount
The owners of motor vehicles with foreign registration numbers will be able to clear these with a 70% reduction. It goes to cars older than seven on the day the import duties are paid, which have travelled in Moldova for at least 90 days cumulatively. This way, the owners will pay 30% of the import duty set for 2023. The MPs gave a final reading to a relevant bill.
