"Romania is currently dominated by sad bankers and tired business people"

Romania is currently dominated by sad bankers and tired business people, Chairman of the Romanian Business People’s Association (AOAR) Florin Pogonaru told the 8th edition of the Biz Days conference in Bucharest on Monday.

‘In Romania, there is still a wide-spread idea that money is made through financial fraud only. Currently, I can see sad bankers and tired business people in Romania,’ said Pogonaru. He said that both Romanian and European banks will be facing big problems with bad loans throughout the middle of 2010.

Pogonaru added that any balanced business can earn money despite the crisis. The purchasing power of Romanians has plummeted in figures, but Romanians continue to consume, X-Trade Brokers Romania CEO Victor Safta told Biz Days.

‘The purchasing power of Romanians has plummeted in figures only. In fact, Romanians continue to consume, and that is visible to the naked eye. In my opinion, the ongoing economic crisis does not affect us much, probably more on a psychological level, also because we have to put up with a defective market,’ Safta explained.

Investor Radu Ioan Tudorache, a stockholder in the Newarch Investments on-line investment company, pointed out that any business conducted without balance would be impossible, and that the distance services segment provided by the European Communities is a solution to get Romania out of the crisis. The 8th edition of the Biz Days trade show of innovation, new technologies, marketing and communications started on Monday in Bucharest.

The Biz Days organizers will devote each day between November 23 and 27 to one single business domain: entrepreneurship, real estate and retail, innovation and design, corporate social responsibility and media and marketing. The event, considered the largest business-to-business event in Romania is gathering nearly 1,500 top and middle managers, entrepreneurs, communication specialists, consultants, investors, public administration officials, NGO officials and mass media.

The first day of the event is devoted to entrepreneurship and the attendees will present six case studies, including success stories and failures of the year 2009, as well as ideas for 2010.

Source: Financiarul

Eurostat: Romania is second in EU in terms of construction output increase in September

In the construction sector, seasonally adjusted production decreased by 1.1 percent in both the euro area and the EU27 in September 2009, compared with the previous month, but in Romania the output recorded a 2-percent rise, second only to the Czech Republic's 2.4-percent rise, show data released on Wednesday by the Eurostat European statistics office.

The 1.1 percent decrease in output this September in the euro area comes after a 0.1 percent rise in August, while the 1.1 percent decrease in the EU27 occurs after a 0.1 percent decrease in August.

Among the EU member states for which data are available for September 2009, construction output rose in four and fell in eight. The highest increases were registered in the Czech Republic (+2.4 percent), Romania (+2.0 percent) and Spain (+1.5 percent), and the largest decreases in Slovenia (-10.4 percent), Slovakia (-6.2 percent) and Portugal (-2.3 percent).

In annual terms, among the member states for which data are available for September 2009, construction output fell in nine and rose only in Poland (+5.7 percent), the Czech Republic (+4.6 percent) and Germany (+2.9 percent). The largest decreases were registered in Slovenia (-32.2 percent), Romania (-22.1 percent) and Bulgaria (-19.7 percent).

Building construction fell by 10.4 percent in the euro area and by 12.6 percent in the EU27, after -14.2 percent and -14.8 percent respectively in August. Civil engineering increased by 0.9 percent in the euro area and by 4.7 percent in the EU27, after +3.2 percent and +6.2 percent respectively in the previous month.

Data with the National Statistics of Romania indicate that construction output increased by 13.2 percent in raw terms in September, but only 2 percent when adjusted for business days and seasonality, on a monthly basis. On an annual basis, construction output was down 21.9 percent in raw terms in September 2009, while the decrease when adjusted for business days and seasonality was 20.7 percent, Agerpres reports.

US Ambassador: IT&C will pull Romania out of the crisis

Traian Basescu told ‘IT&C and the future of the information society’ Global Forum about the risks of the computerized society.

‘The IT&C sector will pull Romania out of the crisis because it has great potential, as a matter of fact it was the economy’s engine in the last two decades,’ Mark Gittenstein, the US Ambassador told ‘ IT&C and the future of the information society’ Global Forum on Monday.

‘I consider that Romania is the proper place for hosting this global forum because it has a significant potential in the IT&C domain that was a strong economic engine in the last 20 years it. Likewise, I believe that the IT&C sector will pull Romania out of the crisis,’ Gittenstein stated.

According to the American diplomat, over 50,000 people work in the IT&C sector in Romania, the wages are above the economy’s average and the sector’s turnover surpassed EUR 6.5 bln.

‘The IT&C sector in Romania is contributing 8 per cent of the GDP and ranks third in the world when it comes to externalizing services, also being one of the world leaders in certification and development in this domain,’ the US Ambassador to Romania added.

The American diplomat underlined that Romania needs investments in the IT&C infrastructure especially in the rural sector that is not covered.

Romanian President shares his worries

Also attending the Forum, President Traian Basescu said that a world in which computerization would allow Government bureaucrats to discretionarily swift through anyone’s life, through anyone’s medical records, financial situation, eating habits or ‘the way we raise our kids,’ is an unwanted future, Mediafax informs.

‘After decades of silence, in 1989 the people of this region unhesitatingly asked for a return to the values of democracy and market economy. In contrast to those that did not experience a communist regime we hold political freedom much dearer because we know what it means to be deprived of it as a country and as individuals. Hence we know from our own experience that the excess of power in the hands of the state means tyranny, corruption, inefficiency. We know that in the hands of a totalitarian Government the progress of science and IT can become instruments of oppression,’ Basescu stated.

Likewise he added that the technical progress registered within the IT&C domain at global level can be the source of new and extremely serious risks. At the same time the Head of State talked to the forum participants about de-bureaucratization and cost reduction with the help of information technology and communications. The President added that Romania is one of the countries that offer notable specialists in the information technology and communications domain.

Basescu claims that just as it happens in other former communist states, in Romania the population’s feelings towards the surveillance of private activities are ‘harsher’ than in other democratic states. He added that because of the way in which the former regime exercised power, the Romanians and the citizens of the other former communist states are more reticent when it comes to storing private data.

At the end of the first session of debates, Sylviane Toporkoff the president of the Global Forum, thanked the Head of State for attending the talks. ‘It’s Romanian politeness,’ Sylviane Toporkoff stated. ‘We wish you complete success,’ the president of the Global Forum added. ‘I’ll win if that’s what you’re asking,’ Traian Basescu stated.

Crises hikes mobile phone traffic

Economic crisis and competition hiked mobile phone network traffic by 33.9 pc in H1

The economic crisis and the intensifying competition have hiked mobile phone network traffic by 33.9 per cent in H1 compared to the level registered at the end of 2008, while the number of users dropped by 60,000 to 24.4 million, Catalin Marinescu, president of ANCOM, stated.

‘The effect of the two factors was beneficial for the users that talked more and paid less. The voice traffic in mobile phone networks totaled over 19.5 billion minutes in the first half of the year, up by 33.9 per cent compared to the level registered at the end of 2008,’ Marinescu stated on Monday at the IT&C Global Forum 2009.

He added that in what concerns the total number of customers, 9.7 million of them accessed the mobile phone services by subscription, while 14.8 million of them used pre-paid calling-cards.

According to the data presented by the head of the National Authority for Regulating and Managing Communications (ANCOM), compared to June 2008 the number of mobile phone subscribers grew by 9.6 per cent from 8.5 million to 9.7 million, while the number of users of pre-paid calling-cards grew by 14.1 per cent to 14.8 million.

On the other hand, in the last ten years Greece’s OTE telecommunications group has earmarked over EUR 2 bln for developing its Romtelecom and Cosmote subsidiaries, with that being the largest private investment in national infrastructure, Yorgos Ioannidis, general director of Romtelecom, stated yesterday.

e-Romania concept to provide almost 600 online services 

The e-Romania concept will be concretized into an information portal to provide almost 600 online services, the acting Minister of Communications and Information Society, Gabriel Sandu, stated at the Bucharest Global Forum 2009 yesterday. ‘The e-Romania strategy entails a daring philosophy of the country’s information future on a long and medium term and will be concretised into a huge information portal offering a total of almost 600 online services’, Minister Sandu said.

He further explained that the purpose of the e-Romania portal was to decentralize services and improve governance helping the public save time and money in its interaction with the state. MCSI is working on a project of strategic national and international importance – setting up a national centre equipped with super-computers, whose main line of work will be the fight against electronic terrorism, the prevention and minimisation of the consequences of natural and technological disasters, the simulation of nuclear stations’ processes, as well as the simulation of social and economic policies.

by Ana Stanciulescu

Blog Action Day 2009

Today is Blog Action Day, with special emphasis on Climate Change. Let's all spread the word!

Romania ranks 36th for IT competitiveness in the world

Romania ranks 36th in the 2009 world classification on IT competitiveness with a rating of 39.6 points of 100 possible, and 9th in Eastern Europe, a study made by The Economist Intelligence Unit and ordered by Business Software Alliance shows. According to the research, Romania has certain performances in the business, juridical and legal environments and for the support granted for the development of IT industry. For this chapter, the first five states in Eastern Europe are Estonia (55.6 of 100 points), Czech Republic (47), Hungary (46.1), Slovenia (46.3) and Lithuania (43.3).

The study made the third year on the row, evaluates and compares the IT level (information technology) and the business environment in 66 states, Romania included, to establish to what extent it stimulates the competitiveness of the IT sector.

“In the present economic climate the support of a powerful technological sector is more important than ever. Technology can help boost economy and can generate economic growth on a long run. We should not forget that this sector brings both incomes and jobs, as well as incomes to the IT industry and business using technology”, Magda Popescu, BSa representatives in Romania said.

In the study six domains compete to set up a solid environment for the IT sector, including ample professional ability resources, an innovation oriented culture, technological infrastructure of world class, a solid juridical regime which should protect intellectual property rights, including copyright and innovations, an open and competitive economy and a government leadership able to find the perfect balance between promoting technology and leaving market force to act.

“Broad band networks are a vital factor for IT competitiveness, while the delay in competitiveness increase may deepen for those countries with a slower adaptation. Technological companies request rapid, performing and safe Internet access, and the importance of broad band networks will grow when more IT services and applications are supplied on the Internet”, the research conclusions show.

The Economist Intelligence Unit represents the information and business division of The Economist Group, the editor of the publication bearing the same name. Through the global network made of over 650 analysts, a political, economic and business evaluation and forecast is made in 200 states.

BSA is the main organization devoted to the promotion of a safe and legal digital universe. Company programs back technological innovation through educational campaigns and public initiatives which promote copyright protection, IT security and electronic trade.

BSA members include Adobe, Altium, Apple, Attachmate, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, Bitdefender, Corel, McAfee, Microsoft, Ned Graphics, O&O Software, Ringler Informatik, Romsym Data, Scalable Software, Siemens, Softwin, Siveco, Staff& Line, Symantec, Tekla, The Math Works.

Supporting the Clean Oradea project!

Translation: Oradea is not an ashtray!

Plead for synthesis (by Mihai Iordanescu)

A synthesis brings together, in a coherent entity, different – sometimes even contradictory – elements that the lucid human mind analyses, compares and integrates in a simpler and clearer structure. Thus, those who acquire the virtue of a synthetic thinking are also capable of prospective and introspective effort, while those who don’t, are left to live in a contradictory, imprecise, hence repetitive present. Romania’s current drama does not come necessarily from the economic and financial crisis that is making news everywhere around the globe. It results mostly from the generalized dispersion, a consequence of the fact that – egocentric as they are – Romania’s rulers are incapable of synthesis.

Full article: Nine O’Clock