Romania is the forty-sixth largest economy globally and ranked thirty-eighth in the most complex economy category based on the ECI (economic complexity index). The country has however faced a perpetual trade deficit (Steers, 456-461). Total exports into the country in 2009, for instance, amounted to $49.41 billion whereas the imports were $76.2 billion. In 2014 also, according to the ECI, Romania had an export of $71.4billion compared to $75.6 billion imports. In as much as an increase in trade is observable, the country is plagued by a perpetual trade deficit (Goschin, 24-37). To turn this scenario around and improve the country’s GDP, a change in the exports and imports must be considered. Among the country’s top exports are vehicle spares at $4.8 billion, wire insulations at $3.9 billion, automobiles at $3.8 billion, refined petrol at $ 3.4 billion and wheat at $1.97 billion (Fleischer, 251-257). Packaged medication at $ 2.87 billion also ranks high on the imports into the country. The main export countries include Germany at $13 billion, Italy at $8 billion, France at $4.4billion, Turkey at 3.5 billion and Hungary at $3 billion. Romania is ranked forty-first regarding imports with the latest standings showing that $75.6 billion was imported into the country. Among the chief imports were crude petroleum and vehicle parts. Germany, Italy, France, Hungary and Poland remain the country’s top import origins. To change this trade scenario and improve the country’s GDP, the government has taken an active role.
Measures taken include implementation of measures to strengthen tax administration, increase transparency, and the implantation of measures of resolving contract disputes in a fast manner. The Competition Council, for instance, is responsible for reviewing strategic acquisitions and mergers under the supreme defense council. Such measures are aimed at enhancing export promotion from Romania. With such a hands-on involvement by the government in major trading decisions in Romania, the country has become regulatory and legislatively unpredictable hence encouraging a negative trade environment. The government thus needs to be less involved in the trading decisions as Molinuevo, (11-22) notes. Measures to reverse the import scenario in Romania may involve an emphasis on import substitution whereby; trade policies are passed which promote economic growth while restricting imports. In Romania, increasing the importation of agricultural produce especially to developing countries will propel the economy further to levels witnessed before its entry into the EU.
Works cited
Fleischer, Wiegand Helmut. "The Romanian-German Economic Relations between 01.2007– 08.2013 in the Context of the Global Economic and Financial Crisis." Procedia Economics and Finance 16 (2014): 251-257.
Goschin, Zizi. "R&D as an engine of regional economic growth in Romania." Romanian Journal of Regional Science 8.1 (2014): 24-37.
Molinuevo, Martín, and Sebastián Sáez. "Policy Framework for Regulating Trade and Investment in Services." 2014. 11-22.
Steers, Richard M., and Luciara Nardon. Managing in the global economy. Routledge, 2014.
