{Year 2012 in Facts and Figures. Article originally published on December 7} [- January 1:] The VAT payers served by the local fiscal inspectorates of the Chisinau and Balti municipalities, the Large Taxpayers Division and the Fiscal Administration Division of Comrat started to present mandatory fiscal reports online, through the agency of the Electronic Statement service. [- January 1:] Egg producers are obliged to stamp the eggs, indicating the country of origin, the settlement, the company’s code and the production date on every egg. [- January 1:] The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry excluded two types of agricultural subsidies: the subsidization of the purchase of fertilizers and the refunding of costs for pumping water for irrigating crops. [- February 2:] The International Monetary Fund approved the next tranche of US$77.5 million of the earlier approved sum of over US$572 million for Moldova. [- February 3:] About 90 trade name designs were selected winners of the Trademark of 2011 contest, which is a key event of the national exhibition “Made in Moldova”. [- February 6:] The World Bank designated a new Country Director for Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova – Qimiao Fan. [- February 10:] Gazprom presented the purchase price of the gas for Moldova for the first quarter of 2012 to Moldovagaz. It is US$382.24 dollars per thousand cubic meters, down 3.69% compared with the fourth quarter of 2011. [- February 10:] Thirteen companies were designated as residents of the Industrial Park “Tracom”. The investments are projected to total over 43.5 million lei. The candidates proposed the following areas of activity: production and processing of metals and artificial stone, metal, wooden and polystyrene baguettes and frames. [-February 10:] The Tax Inspectorate was banned from blocking the bank accounts of economic entities and from refusing to issue certificates confirming the lack of debts, if the overdue payment is lower than 100 lei. [-February 15:] The commercial bank Universalbank remained without a license following a decision taken by the Administration Board of the National Bank of Moldova. [-February 22-25:] The International Wine Exhibition “ExpoVin Moldova 2012” held in Chisinau brought together over 140 national and foreign companies. [-February 24:] The Administration Board of the National Bank of Moldova reduced the base rate on the main short-term monetary policy operations by two percentage points, from 6.5% to 4.5% a year. [- March 6:] The Public Property Agency of the Ministry of Economy launched the first privatization round this year. [-March 9:] The France – Moldova Chamber of Trade and Industry presented its new team and a new organization. Emmanuel Skoulios, who served as deputy chairman, was appointed as chairman of the organization. [-March 9:] The Moldovan-Belgian Chamber of Trade started work in Chisinau. [-March 15:] The European Business Association in Moldova and the Chamber of Trade and Industry signed a new cooperation agreement. [- March 16:] A new technical assistance project was launched within the Budget Sector Support Program (€45 million) that is financed by the European Union – “Economic Stimulation in Rural Areas” (ESRA). [- April 6:] SA Energocom closed the negotiations on the contract for the supply of electric power to Moldova with Dtek Power Trade of Ukraine. The contract was extended until the yearend. [- April 26:] The freight railway traffic through the Transnistrian regime was resumed after a six-year pause. [- April 28:] The Chisinau Municipal Council approved the 2012 municipal budget in the final reading. [- May 1:] The World Bank Board of Directors approved a loan of US$18 million and a grant of US$4.4 million from the Global Environment Fund for implementing the Moldova Agriculture Competitiveness Project. [- May 3:] The Government decided to reintroduce sanitary-veterinary and phytosanitary services at customs posts on the state border. [- May 5:] Polish Minister of Agriculture Marek Sawicki arrived in Moldova on a visit, accompanied by the largest Polish dairy producer. [- May 11:] The national energy regulator ANRE approved new electric power charges for end-users. The charge for the customers of Gas Natural Fenosa was set at 1.58 lei per kWh, as against 1.48 lei earlier, up 6.8%. [- May 15:] The Tax Service launched a hotline to ensure control over the excise stamps on alcoholic beverages. [- May 28:] Prime Minister Vlad Filat had a meeting with the World Bank Country Director for Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova Qimiao Fan. The two officials signed two financing agreements to implement the Agriculture Competitiveness Project. Under the agreements, the International Development Association will provide a loan of US$18 million and a grant of US$4.4 million, allocated from the Global Environment Fund for implementing the Agriculture Competitiveness Project. [- May 28:] A new regenerative glass melting oven with a capacity of 200 tonnes a day was put into operation at the state-run Chisinau Glass Factory. The oven has a modern cooling system and a computerized management program. [- June 4:] The Moldova Millennium Challenge Fund signed four contracts to the value of about US$92.7 million. Under them, 93 km of the Sarateni – Soroca road, which was included in the Compact Program of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, will be rehabilitated over two years. [- June 4:] A number of filling stations in Chisinau increased the fuel prices by about 0.2 lei. [- June 7:] The Government instituted the contest commission for selecting the investor for creating the Exhibitions and Trade Center “Moldova” in Russia and approved the regulations concerning the organization of the contest. [- June 12:] The second round of talks on the creation of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between Moldova and the EU started in Brussels. [- June 15:] The Government approved the strategy for developing the rural extension services for 2012-2022, whose main objective is to modernize the rural settlements by implementing consultancy services oriented towards the generation of high value added in agriculture. [- June 23:] The draft new law on internal naval transport of Moldova was approved by the Government. [- June 26:] The 95.85% holding in Viorica- Cosmetic was sold for 51 million lei. [- June 27:] Moldova and the European Investment Bank signed a lending agreement for €17 million for improving the electric transmission system so as to bring it closer to the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTOSO-E). [- July 4:] The airline Get Star purchased a Boeing 747 CARGO. It is the first freight plane by size and capacity in Moldova. [- August 6:] The new head of the State Main Tax Inspectorate Nicolae Vicol, who was named to this post by an order of the minister of finance, took up his duties. [- August 7:] The municipality stopped issuing authorizations for placing kiosks of all kinds in Chisinau. [- August 15:] Six wine making companies were examined to see if they can export products to Russia. [- August 23:] The filling stations posted new fuel prices. A liter of gasoline and diesel fuel cost by 0.4-0.5 lei more. [- September 14:] Fifteen clothes and footwear companies launched the promotion campaign “From Moldovan brands” that was supported by the USAID-funded Competitiveness Enhancement and Enterprise Development Project (CEED II). [- September 21:] Prime Minister Vlad Filat singed a new application for a loan of €150 million from the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The money is to be invested in the rehabilitation of the national roads. [- September 27:] Parliament voted the ratification of the Agreement on the Free Trade Area between the member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States. [- September 28:] The leader of the Transnistrian administration Yevgeny Shevchuk signed a so-called decree to introduce special customs duties on the import of goods that must have excise duties from the right bank of the Nistru. [- October 3:] Purcari Winery won the Top Prize in winemaking and winegrowing for this year. [- October 3:] The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development lent €35 million to Moldova through the Moldovan Residential Energy Efficiency Financing Facility (MoREEFF). [- October 4:] The Ministry of Economy drafted a bill to extend the term for paying the VAT from 90 days to six months on certain types of imported raw material and accessories that will be used exclusively to make goods for export. [- October 8:] A number of 58 Moldovan farmers received new tractors. They were bought with the ninth tranche of the Japanese Government within the project of assistance for farmers 2KR. [- October 15:] The France – Moldova Chamber of Trade and Industry signed a cooperation agreement with the French Agency for International Development of Enterprises UBIFRACE, the office in Romania. [- October 22:] The International Organization for Economic Development, which works in 247 countries of the world, opened a representative office in Moldova. [- November 7:] The e-Government center has launched a new service called e – Licensing. [- November 10:] The National Regulatory Agency for Electronic Communications and Information Technology (ANRCETI) has issued by a license for using radio frequencies/channels to provide fourth-generation services (4G) to Moldcell and Orange Moldova, for the first time. [- November 12:] A number of filling stations decreased the fuel prices. A liter of gasoline coded 95, which cost 17.57 lei, became cheaper by 0.45 lei, while the price of a liter of diesel fuel that cost 16.57 lei fell by 0.4 lei. The price of liquefied petroleum gas was reduced by 0.5 lei a liter. [- November 15:] USAID launched the Business Regulation, Investment, and Trade Environment (BRITE) Program that will last by the summer of 2016 and aims to assist the Government of Moldova in improving the business environment. The benefits for the public and private sectors from the promoted reforms may add to US$100 million each. [- November 16:] The Chamber of Trade and Industry of Moldova and the Russian Business Council signed a memorandum of cooperation. [- November 19:] The European Commission expressed its readiness to accept the official request from Moldova for the export of fish, eggs, and poultry to the EU. The Ministry of Economy presented in Brussels information about the country’s trade and the process of implementing the European Commission’s recommendations in the context of the talks on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between Moldova and the EU. According to the presented information, the EU has been the main trade partner of Moldova over the last three years, with a share of 47% of the exports and of 44.7% of the imports in the first eight months of the year. [- November 21:] The Soldanesti tobacco fermenting plant was privatized. The state-owned holding of 91.2% was bought on the first day of the outcry auction held at the Moldova Stock Exchange between November 20 and 23. The 603,213 shares in the plant were bought at the initial selling price of 0.5 lei per share, for a total of 301,000 lei. [- November 21:] It was announced that the three-year program with the International Monetary Fund, which expires next January, will be extended for another three months. / The International Monetary Fund recommended Moldova to increase the road toll and excise duties on fuels. The head of the IMF Mission Nikolay Gueorguiev told a news conference that the authorities should review a number of laws that were adopted recently or are in the process of adoption, including the tax exemptions for waste and residues, excise duties on tobacco products and the road tax. [- November 23:] A business incubator with 15 residents already was opened in Rezina. It can accommodate 19 companies. The total cost of the project is almost 7 million lei. This is the third incubator created with the financial support of the EU. [- November 28:] The Millennium Challenge Fund Moldova launched a contest to rehabilitate the first two irrigation systems include in the Compact Program: the irrigation systems in Criuleni and in Lopatna village of Orhei district. Under the contest conditions, all the damaged pumps and about 85% of the pumps will be replaced. The buildings of the pumping stations will be reconstructed. The irrigation area will be extended by about 1,000 hectares. [- December 6:] The U.S. Senate passed a bill to repeal the Jackson-Vanik Amendment applied to Moldova, after it was approved by the Chamber of Representatives on November 16. The law, which is to be ratified by the U.S. President Barack Obama, eliminates the last legal obstacle to attracting U.S. investments to Moldova. The Jackson-Vanik Amendment was imposed on Moldova during the Soviet period. [Alina Marin, Info-Prim Neo]