Press Review - September 12, 2018

09.12.2018 By Oana Gavrila

Inflation Rate Climbs to 5.1% in August

Consumer prices grew an annual 5.1% in August, after dropping to 4.56% in July from 5.4% in June, data from the country's statistics board showed Tuesday.

Romania's central bank in May raised its year-end inflation forecast to 3.6% from a previous projection of 3.5% but kept its end-2019 inflation forecast at 3%. It said it expected inflation to hover around 5% in the second and third quarters and then easing in the fourth quarter.

Leu Firms Against Euro

The Romanian leu firmed slightly against the euro Tuesday when the central bank calculated a midday reference rate 4.6325 lei/euro, up 0.02% compared with Monday's reference rate.

The leu also firmed against the US dollar to a midday rate of 3.9946 Tuesday from 4.0019 Monday.

The price of gold dropped to its lowest level since Feb 10, standing at 153.3126 lei per gram of gold Tuesday from 153.6285 lei/gram on Monday.

Interior Minister Says Will only Resign if Asked by Executive Party Committee

Interior minister Carmen Dan said she has no intention to resign and would only do so if the Social Democratic Party's executive committee required her to step down.

Dan said she would “unreservedly” step down if the ruling party decides she must. She has said repeatedly she has not overstepped her duties as regards the violent behavior of riot police towards peaceful demonstrators at a rally on August 10.

Dragnea Hails Referendum Seeking to Rule Out Marriage Equality

Ruling party leader and lower chamber speaker Liviu Dragnea on Tuesday hailed the Parliament's adoption of a citizens' initiative that seeks to rule out same-sex marriage by redefining family in the country's constitution.

Romania’s Senate on Tuesday passed a citizens' initiative to revise the definition of the family in the Romanian Constitution as based on the marriage between a man and a woman, which will be the subject of a future referendum.

The initiative, filed by the conservative/traditionalist group Coalition for Family, was approved with 107 votes for, 13 against and seven abstentions, reaching the necessary two-thirds threshold to trigger a referendum.

Romania’s Social Democrat Party decided to set the tentative date of the referendum on October 7, during a top brass meeting last night, with the exact date still to be set by the Government.

The initiative seeks to change the definition of the family in the Constitution from based on the “marriage consented between spouses” to one founded on the “marriage between man and woman”.