Reports and Analyses

Romania’s mid term economic growth hindered by ageing population. According to the European Commission, Romania’s budget deficit this year could exceed the target adopted by the Government because some expenditure reduction measures could be difficult to implement from a social and political point of view. EC also notes that the Convergence Program does not contain sufficient measures for 2011 and 2012, Mediafax informs. ‘In 2010 the deficit could be more unfavorable than the one projected by the program, considering that some of the measures meant to reduce expenditures, such as public sector layoffs, are difficult to implement from a social and political point of view,’ a document published yesterday and containing the European Commission’s (EC) comments on Romania’s Convergence Program for 2009-2012 points out.

A Turkish economist forecast on Monday positive growth figures. The chief economist of Turkey's Ata Yatırım, an investment company, said she was expecting positive growth and Q1 results.

"However, I think political risks may have a slight pressure on the market this week," chief economist Nurhan Toğuç told the Anatolia news agency.

On March 8, the Central Bank of Turkey revised the year-end growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) up to 4.4 percent from 4.3 percent as growth rate for end-2010 is estimated as 3.9 percent.

The Black Sea, long seen as an important source of Turkey’s fossil fuels, may have enough petroleum to cover Turkey’s energy needs for the next 40 years.

Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) General Director Mehmet Uysal, speaking at the Ninth Turkish International Oil and Gas Conference (TUROGE 2010) on Tuesday, announced that according to their research, the amount of fossil fuel on Turkish soil is not enough to attract international attention but the potential under the Black Sea is different story.