ECO-BUS WEEKLY DIGEST June 7-13. Most important Economy & Business news by IPN
MONDAY, June 7
PPPDA protests at Competition Council “Down with appalling prices!”
Members and supporters of the PPPDA on June 7 protested in front of the head office of the Competition Council against the massive rise in fuel prices during the past six months. They came with placards, Moldova’s flag and pennons with the symbols of the PPPDA, chanting “Down with the appalling prices!”, “Come with us as they rob you too!”, “Resign!”. According to the leader of the PPPDA Andrei Năstase, people from all over the country came to the protest. “While the Competition Council keeps silent, we are obliged to pay exaggeratedly high fuel prices. A month ago, the PPPDA asked to finish a report (investigation report in oil products market, e.n.) that has been hidden from the people. We continue to insist on the publication of these reports, but not before imposing particular penalties. We demand to punish those who reached this cartel agreement and obliged us all to pay more for fuel, which means paying higher food prices, higher prices for all the basic necessities,” stated the politician.
Online job fair with salaries even higher than 20,000 lei
Jobs with salaries of 5,000 lei and up are available at a virtual fair that is held between June 7 and 17. The event involves over 130 companies operating in Moldova , which offer about 2,000 jobs in medicine, public administration, processing industry, accounting, trade, transport and other areas. Elena Coban, senior specialist at the National Employment Agency, said the fair is housed by www.e-angajare.md and this year’s edition offers only qualified jobs. Staring with June 7, the persons looking for a job, including citizens who returned from abroad, can analyze the available offers on the portal. The website can be accessed from any corner of the world during 11 days. The persons looking for a job will be abler to submit a CV for the wanted job directly. The highest salary offered by the companies taking part in the fair exceeds 20,000 lei, for jobs in the IT sector.
● TUESDAY, June 8
CNSM seeks social protection measures for persons affected by COVID-19
A large number of salary earners were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictive measures imposed to contain the pandemic led to the diminution of economic activity in most of the sectors of the national economy and the worsening of the socioeconomic situation in the country. The National Trade Union Confederation of Moldova (CNSM) seeks long-lasting measures to ensure the social protection of the citizens. The CNSM ask to purchase vaccines from different authorized producers, depending on the population’s requests, to allow employees to be away from work on the vaccination day, to compensate the salary earners for the costs incurred to do COVID-19 tests from the mandatory health insurance funds.
PGO checks legality of 2008 contract for supply of electricity from Ukraine
The Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) takes steps to determine the legality of the contract for the supply of electrical energy from Ukraine to the Republic of Moldova that was signed in 2008. The investigation was launched on May 5 this year after Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo annulled the order not to take legal action in this case that was issued by the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime and Special Cases in 2017. According to the PGO, new relevant circumstances appeared and a legal solution is to be ordered in this case. The investigation is conducted “in rem” and no one was charged. In a news conference at IPN last November, a number of energy experts said the citizens of the Republic of Moldova in 2008 were defrauded of US$14.5 million as a result of a scheme to purchase electrical energy. The scheme involved ex-Presided Igor Dodon, who then served as Minister of Economy, and Parliament Speaker Zinaida Grechanyi, who then held the post of Premier. The experts said criminal proceedings were instituted, but these were dropped without the case being investigated.
Values of monetary policy tools kept at current level
The Executive Board of the National Bank of Moldova decided unanimously to maintain the current level of the core rate and standing facilities. Thus, the core rate applied to the main short-term monetary policy operations is still 2.65 percent annually and interest rates on overnight loans and deposits remained at the level of 5.15 percent and 0.15 percent annually, respectively, IPN reports, quoting a press release of the NBM. The required reserves ratio from funds attracted in Moldovan lei and in non-convertible currency is also maintained at the current level of 26.0 percent of the calculation basis, as well as the required reserves ratio from funds attracted in freely convertible currency at current level of 30.0 percent.
● WEDNESDAY, June 9
A part of money obtained through energy scheme in 2008 went to Vlad Plahotniuc
Half of the gains earned by the scheme to import electrical energy from Ukraine in 2008 went to an offshore company belonging to former Democratic leader Vladimir Plahotniuc, energy expert Sergiu Tofilat stated in a news conference at IPN. According to Sergiu Tofilat, two months ago the presidential administration received information from the Service for the Prevention and Combating of Money Laundering, according to which half of the money earned by Energopartner (intermediary company) went to an offshore company owned by the ex-Democratic leader – Borg Trades Corporation. There was also a direct transfer from Energopartner to Borg Trades Corporation, with which a Swiss watch worth US$50,000 was bought.
New methodology on fuel prices to be put to vote next week
The public meeting to examine and put to the vote the draft decision concerning the approval of the methodology for calculating and applying the prices of oil products will be held on June 14, starting at 3pm, the National Agency for Energy Regulation has said, being quoted by IPN. The meeting will be broadcast live on Facebook.com/anre.moldova. Those who want to take part in the online meeting need to preregister. During the past six months, the price gasoline in Moldova grew by over 5 lei or 33%. Recently, President Maia Sandu promulgated the law to cap the prices of oil products.
● THURSDAY, June 10
Agriculture minister asks Government to partially compensate farmers for losses
Minister of Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment Ion Perju requested the Government to allocate 47 million lei from the Reserve Fund for partially compensating the famers for the damage caused to them by the unfavorable weather conditions. “We started a rather good agricultural year compared with what we had in 2020, but the changes in the weather that affect us more intensely prevent us from having a perfect agricultural year,” Ion Perju stated in a press briefing on June 10. The minster noted that over 20 exceptional situations due to natural disasters, such as hail and thunderstorms, have been recorded so far this year. They caused considerable damage in 29 settlements of 14 districts, destroying field crops, orchards and roads. Edineț, Criuleni, Drochia, Florești, Ialoveni, Orhei, Rezina, Râșcani, Soroca, Sângerei, Telenești, Șoldănești, and Ungheni were the worst hit.
● FRIDAY, June 11
CNSM will challenge commission’s report on property of trade unions in court
The administration of the National Trade Union Confederation (CNSM) does not agree with the conclusions of the commission of inquiry into the sale of the assets of trade unions and will challenge the report in court if its conclusion and recommendations are not modified. It is an attempt by the state to appropriate the property of trade unions, CNSM chairman Oleg Budza stated in a press briefing. He noted that the trade unions sold their assets to firms that offered the highest price and Ilan Shor didn’t attend the negotiations. Oleg Budza said there is a draft Parliament decision providing that the Government of the Republic of Moldova, after it examines the commission of inquiry’s report, will consider ways of recovering the trade union property by incorporating this into the public property. This attempt to take over the assets of trade unions is illegal and the CNSM will put up resistance by all legal ways. During 15-20 years, they invested over 170 million lei in sanatoriums, children’s camps, the Labor Institute. The state didn’t invest anything in these.
Central banks of Moldova and Romania sign new cooperation agreement
The National Bank of Moldova (NBM) and the National Bank of Romania (NBR) on June 11 signed a new cooperation agreement. According to the NBM, a new agreement was needed because the previous agreement signed in 2001 does not correspond to the new context that is marked by the multiple reforms in the banking sector, aligned with the best practices that can meet the current requirements and challenges. In the signing ceremony, NBM governor Octavian Armașu said that the NBR in time had a remarkable contribution to the development of the financial-banking sector of Moldova, primarily within the EU-funded Twinning project that was aimed at strengthening the NBM’s regulation and ban surveillance capacities. “This support contributed to the alignment of the national banking legislation with the EU standards, the efficient implementation of the new legal framework and the development of the Bank’s surveillance,” noted the governor.
EBCS suggests steps for reducing pay gap in public and real sectors
The Electoral Bloc of the Communists and the Socialists (EBCS) proposes four steps that should be taken to narrow the pay gap in the public sector and the real sector. The project was presented by the bloc’s candidate for MP Olga Rață in a press briefing. Olga Rață noted that as a first step, there will be used a single minimum salary standard instead of the two systems used at present. For the purpose, a common guaranteed minimum salary will be introduced in the economy and will be used to calculate the pays of workers of the real sector and of public sector employees. The reduction of pay gaps in the public sector is the second step. During the next two years, when decisions to raise the salaries are taken, priority will be given to employees from the least paid categories. To reduce the inequality in incomes, including in salaries, the pays of persons with low and average incomes will be taxed at lower rates, this being the third step.
● SATURDAY, June 12
Tax system should be reviewed, economists
Given the absence of foreign funds for investments, the Republic of Moldova does not develop, but survives, said economic experts according to whom the pandemic seriously struck a number of sectors of the economy and investments are needed for reinvigoration. According to economist Sergiu Gaibu, the pandemic and international isolation led to a considerable decline in investments. In the absence of these, new jobs cannot be created. “It is a chain. Jobs should be created and these will generate revenues. To create jobs, the tax system should be reviewed. Currently, the taxes account for 30% of the GDP. For a country like ours, this is a burden. For a state, it is much cheaper to reduce taxes than to incur costs for following these taxes. For the Republic of Moldova, the taxes should represent 20%. The authorities should set the goal of reducing the fiscal burden at least for the small businesses that want economic development,” Sergiu Gaibu stated in the talk show “Emphasis on Today” on TVR Moldova channel.
Route by which Moldova is supplied with gas will not be changed this year, Moldovagaz
The head of the Administration Board of Moldovagaz Vadim Ceban is sure that the dissentions between Russia and Ukraine will not influence the traditional route for supplying the Republic of Moldova with natural gas. Even if this happens, the Republic of Moldova is prepared from technical viewport. “I don’t think the route by which the Republic of Moldova is supplied with gas will be changed. Most probably, the traditional route through Ukraine will be maintained. But we are ready for any scenario. From technical viewpoint, we can ensure the supply of gas in reverse regime through the Trans-Balkan corridor. We can also receive natural gas through the Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline that will be fully functional in October, as our counterparts from TransGaz assure,” Vadim Ceban stated in the talk show “Friday with Anatolie Golea” on RTR Moldova channel.
