Brussels, 10/06/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 11 June, the Commission will be targeting Romania with policy advice, calling on it to take measures to prevent its deficit going beyond the 3% of GDP mark. From 2.2% in 2006, the Romanian public deficit reached 2.5% in 2007 and is dangerously close to the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) threshold. According to the Commission's spring forecasts, Romania's deficit will be 2.9% in 2008 and 3.7% in 2009 (if policy remains unchanged). Bucharest will therefore be invited to take urgent measures to strengthen budgetary consolidation and the quality of its public finance, while continuing with its structural reforms. Initiated against France (EUROPE 9670), this revised Stability and Growth Pact instrument does not require Council endorsement.
At the end of January, at the time of analysing Romania's convergence programme, the Commission had identified the risks of an adverse drift in public finance, considering that the country's budgetary policy strategy was not wise (EUROPE 9591). In addition to strengthened budgetary consolidation and more ambitious objectives for 2008 and beyond, it recommended that Romania accelerate its progression towards the Medium Term Objective (MTO) and expressed concern at the worsening of external imbalance which is a risk for the long term viability of public finance. Immediately after this, finance ministers had recommended that the country's authorities continue in their effort to avoid the launch of excessive deficit procedure (EUROPE 9600). (A.B./transl.jl)