Romania Feed

The operating income of Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB.RO) went down 6% to RON11.7 million, while the net profit went down 33% to RON3.57 million in the first half, its financial report published on Thursday shows.

Romanian oil storage and shipment firm Oil Terminal ended the first six months of 2021 with net profit of RON9.73 million, 28% higher than in the same period of 2020, and turnover worth RON94.8 million, up 3.4%, according to ZF calculations based on the financial report the company submitted to the BSE.

Automotive component manufacturer VCST Automotive Production Alba, the local subsidiary of Belgium’s BMT group, posted RON122.4 million (EUR25.4 million) revenue in 2020, a decline of 18% from the RON149.6 million (EUR31.6 million) of 2019, Finance Ministry data show.

Scandinavian furniture and home décor retailer JYSK is expanding further in Romania by opening a new store, in Vaslui, thus getting to a domestic network of 104 units.

The year 2021 started well for the alcoholic beverage importer BDG, as sales returned to growth and beat not only the 2020 but the 2019 level, as well.

The Romanian market is, by store number, among the 3 most important European ones, for the Dutch-Belgian group, together with the Netherlands and Belgium.

Dragos Sarbu, CEO of electronics retailer Flanco, says expansion abroad is still part of the company’s plans, despite COVID-19 pandemics. The first country the Romanian firm will enter is Hungary, most likely in 2022.

East Grain, a grain trader controlled by several entrepreneurs of Romania and Hungary, last year completed a EUR7.6 million investment in a agricultural logistic centre in Sanpaul commune of Mures county.

The government on Wednesday agreed to increase the number of foreign workers newly admitted on the Romanian labour market in 2021 by another 25,000.

Electrica (EL.RO) shareholders have approved the establishment of a renewable energy generation company, Electrica Productie Energie, a report to the Bucharest Stock Exchange shows.

Integrated mobility service provider Autonom Services has reached an agreement with BRD-Group Société Generale as intermediary of a prospective corporate bond offering program in the fourth quarter of 2021, the company announced on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

Romania’s mergers and acquisitions market saw a significant rebound in the first half, with a total of 69 transactions, reflecting an increase of 19% on the year-ago period, an EY study shows.

Romanians have over the past year made payments worth above RON13 billion through PayPoint network, namely 123 million transactions, with an average value of RON105.

Cost is the most important factor in deciding to subscribe to a brand new video streaming service for almost half of the consumers (46%), according to Deloitte Digital Media Trends 2021 report, driving 55% of respondents to choose free, ad-supported video services. The report also highlights that price sensitivity is key across all types of entertainment services, as respondents using video (49%), gaming (38%) and music (37%) services would cancel or stop if the price for the services increased.

The local subsidiary of Dutch-held retailer Used Products, which sells new and used products, will open its second franchised store in the country, in Timisoara, in October, following a more than EUR50,000 investment.

Alro Slatina group, one of Europe’s biggest vertically integrated aluminum producers, posted losses of RON47.5 million in the first six months of 2021, compared with profit worth RON253.6 million in the corresponding period of last year, while consolidated sales reached RON1.53 billion, up 13% from 1H/2020.

The pandemic led to changes in the residential rental market in Bucharest, both in terms of the average rent apartment owners ask and in terms of potential tenants, who chose to give up living in a rented place because remote work or online classes allowed them to live anywhere without having to stay in the city.

Romania’s annual inflation rate sped up in July to 5%, while from June 2021 consumer prices were up 1.0%, in line with data from the country’s statistics board.

Sweets producer Mars Romania, part of the Mars group, one of the largest foods businesses in the world, ended 2020 with RON568 million revenue, 3.4% lower year-on-year, data from financial analysis platform Confidas show.

Profi store chain, controlled by Mid Europa Partners investment fund, is raising its bet on rural areas, with almost half of the 90 stores opened in 2021 being under the Loco format, destined to villages and communes.