President Klaus Iohannis told a message sent to the Romanian-Slovak business forum on Tuesday that Romania’s economy is currently going through a robust economic growth, recording 5.2% in the first semester of 2016. At the same time, he pointed out that there is a particular collaboration potential between Romania and Slovakia in the automotive industry, but there can be progress in other sectors, too.
“Romania’s economy is going through a period of robust economic growth. We have a 5.2% economic increase for the first semester of this year, which makes Romania a European champion on economic growth. The International Monetary Fund has recently improved the economic growth prognosis up to 5% for the entire year of 2016. These are obviously encouraging figures, but even more encouraging is the fact that the economic growth engines have been multiplied (…),” reads President Iohannis’ message.
The Romanian president argues that the good economic outlook is also due to the fact that net investments have posted a 9% rise in the first semester, while the direct foreign investments increased by 12 percent in the first seven months of 2016.
“There is a particular partnership potential between Romania and Slovakia in the automotive industry. Slovakia has recorded remarkable progress in the past years, becoming a major actor in the car making industry. The automotive industry in Romania has increased in the past ten years from EUR 4 billion to over EUR 20 billion in 2015. We can have similar progress in other sectors, such as the IT and telecommunications sectors, where the Romanian youngsters are very well trained and represent a valuable resource for the business environment,” Klaus Iohannis stated.
The Romanian head of state also pointed out that among the potential bilateral projects there are the Danube region and Constanta Port, which might become the main maritime port for the Slovak trade.
“The EU Strategy for the Danube Region is vital in this respect (…) Secondly, we want a tighter collaboration between the professional associations and the chambers of commerce and industry from both countries, to identify new competitive advantages and collaboration opportunities,” Iohannis concluded, inviting the Slovak businessmen to invest in Romania.
The business forum was organized amid Slovak President, Andrej Kiska’s state visit in Romania.