Romania's government is redoing the budget calculations using the new prognosis that shows the economy shrinking by 4 percent and the first results reveal budget revenues decreasing by 20 billion lei versus the level stipulated in the current budget, people from the Cabinet told NewsIn.
The
European Commission adopted the estimate made by the International
Monetary Fund that pinpoints Romania's economic growth at -4 percent.
Officials
mentioned that the government reached an agreement with the fund
concerning the budget deficit, which was settled at 4.6 percent of the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Consequently,
budget revenues could lower from the level currently stipulated in the
budget of 193 billion euros or 33.5 percent of the GDP to 173 billion
euros. The 2009 budget was built on a 2.5 percent economic growth.
“If
these pessimistic predictions turn real, we will have to cut expenses
with goods and services, but also investments, while increasing some
expenses like social and unemployment aids,” explained people from the
Cabinet.
The
Labor Ministry Marian Sarbu declared yesterday that the number of
unemployed in Romania will hike by 300,000 people the most this year
over the past year which would require a 500 million lei surplus to the
budget for indemnities and trainings.
The
president of the Social Democrat Party (PSD) stated yesterday that the
13 billion euros that the country is to receive from the IMF will be
used for stabilizing the exchange rate, while the 5 billion euros
allotted by the European Union will go into mending the budget gap and
investments. The World Bank, The European Investment Bank and the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will give together
some 2 billion euros.
