OECD economic surveys : Romania 1998 / Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, issuing body.

Series:

OECD economic surveys.

OECD Economic Surveys

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Economic history.

Romania--Economic conditions--1989-.

Romania.

Romania--Economic policy--1989-.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (219 pages).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Paris, France : OECD Publishing, [1998]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Assessment and recommendations I. Background, economic developments and outlook -A difficult starting point -The new government programme -Recent macroeconomic developments -Economic outlook II. Macroeconomic policies -Fiscal policy -Monetary policy: recent developments and current challenges -November 1996 and the new government's policy -Key issues currently facing monetary policy -The banking system III. Economic restructuring -Privatisation and enterprise restructuring -Foreign trade and restructuring -Promoting foreign investment IV. Labour market and social policies -Introduction -The Social Context: Living Standards in Romania -The labour market -The social protection system and social spending -The institutional response to lay-offs Bibliography Annexes -I. The package of ''100 laws'' -II. The agricultural sector -III. The ''energy problem'' in Romania -IV. Strain and structural change -V. Features of social protection -VI. Regional dimensions of economic activity -VII. Competition policy -VIII. Chronology of economic events -IX. Statistical annex.

Contents:

Intro

Table of contents

Assessment and recommendations

I. Background, economic developments and outlook

A difficult starting point

A gradualist strategy for structural reform was inadequate

Table 1. Key messages of the 1993 OECD Economic Assessment of Romania

Table 1. Key messages of the 1993 OECD Economic Assessment of Romania (cont.)

The new government programme

Recent macroeconomic developments

Foreign trade: engine of recovery but also a source of tension

Figure 1. CONTRIBUTIONS TO GDP GROWTH

Figure 2. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION

The shock of the 1997 stabilisation programme

Figure 3. GROWTH RATES OF EXPORTS AND IMPORTS IN US

Structural change appears to be limited

Table 2. Employment structure

Table 3. Share of private sector in economic activity

Only recently has monetary discipline been restored

Figure 4. INFLATION TRENDS

After the high volatility of early 1997, money markets have calmed down

Figure 5. REAL EXCHANGE RATE

Foreign trade and payments

Figure 6. FOREIGN TRADE BY COUNTRY, 1996

A fragile current account position and narrow financing sources...

Table 4. Balance of payments

... but foreign debt is still moderate

Achieving full current account convertibility in 1997

Labour markets and income policy

A somewhat puzzling low unemployment rate...

Figure 7. KEY FEATURES OF THE LABOUR MARKET

... given the decrease in industrial employment

Figure 8. LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY IN INDUSTRY

Real incomes have fallen sharply

Economic outlook

Table 5. Economic outlook

II. Macroeconomic policies

Fiscal policy

The institutional framework for the budget

Box 1. Reform in public sector management

The fiscal position up to 1996

Figure 9. CONSOLIDATED GOVERNMENT BALANCE

Figure 10. GROSS PUBLIC DEBT IN PERCENTAGE OF GDP, 1996.

Table 6. Fiscal and quasi-fiscal deficits

Box 2. Quasi-fiscal expenditures in 1996

The 1997 Budget

Figure 11. NBR REFINANCING

Table 7. General government consolidated revenue and expenditure

Table 8. General government consolidated expenditure

Fiscal pressures and areas requiring policy attention

Social security funds

Figure 12. SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFICIARIES

Tax simplification and base broadening

Table 9. Comparative structure of general government revenue, 1995

Depreciation provisions

Public sector wages

Figure 13. REAL WAGE

Fiscal pressures coming from the banking sector

Monetary policy: recent developments and current challenges

Monetary policy and unsustainable growth: 1993-1996

Figure 14. COMMERCIAL BANKS' INTEREST RATES

Figure 15. NOMINAL EXCHANGE RATE

Table 10. Remonetisation

Figure 16. RECENT CPI TRENDS

Aspects of remonetisation 1994-1996

Figure 17. THE RATIO OF MONEY SUPPLY TO GDP

November 1996 and the new government&amp

rsquoe

s policy

Key issues currently facing monetary policy

Capital flows

Box 3. Programming further liberalisation of capital movements

Box 4. Instruments of monetary policy

Exchange rate policy since January 1997

Figure 18. REAL EFFECTIVE EXCHANGE RATE

Credit conditions and interest rates

Policy co-ordination and consistency

Figure 19. AVERAGE NET TREASURY ACCOUNT AT THE NBR

The banking system

Ownership structure and market shares

Table 11. The role of the major state banks in the banking system

Box 5. New legislation regarding banks

Table 12. Commercial banks' classified credits and risk provisions

Relationship between the banking system and the wider economy

III. Economic restructuring

Privatisation and enterprise restructuring

The privatisation process

The 1990-94 period in retrospect.

Table 13. Number of privatised companies, according to size

The 1995 Mass Privatisation Programme

The privatisation policy since early 1997

Table 14. Sectors with highest rates of privatisation, end-September 1997

Figure 20. WEIGHT OF PRIVATE SECTOR IN SECTORAL GDP, 1996

The restructuring of large state-owned companies and Régies Autonomes

Table 15. Financial indicators of the major Régies Autonomes

Development of a new private sector

Figure 21. EMPLOYMENT IN PRIVATISED AND NEW PRIVATE COMPANIES

Promoting entrepreneurship

Figure 22. NUMBER OF NEWLY ESTABLISHED ENTITIES

Foreign trade and restructuring

A dual trade structure

Table 16. Trade structure of the Romanian economy, 1996

The role of trade in job creation and destruction

Table 17. Net job creation and destruction by enterprise size,1992-96

Table 17. Net job creation and destruction by enterprise size,1992-96 (cont.)

Table 18. Employment, output and productivity growth, 1992-96

Trade policy

Promoting foreign investment

The special FDI incentives

IV. Labour market and social policies

Introduction

The Social Context: Living Standards in Romania

The level and distribution of household income

Table 19. Income inequality

Poverty

Table 20. Incidence and distribution of poverty in 1996 by the occupational status of household heads

Who are the poor?

The labour market

The labour force, employment and unemployment

Table 21. Labour force participation and employment rates in selected transition countries

Table 22. Employment by sector of economic activity

Underemployment, discouraged workers and ""hidden'' unemployment

Table 23. The labour market status of persons registered as unemployed, Q1 1997

Figure 23. DISCOURAGED WORKERS AND INVOLUNTARY PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT

Wages and the income distribution.

Table 24. Average gross monthly wages in selected transition countries, 1994-96

Box 6. Wage setting

Table 25. Wage differentiation by industry, after tax

Labour-market conditions in expanding sectors

Table 26. Wage differentiation between private and public sectors

Figure 24. EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, 1996

The social protection system and social spending

Table 27. Public expenditure on social policies as a percentage of GDP

Figure 25. DISTRIBUTION OF WAGES AND TRANSFERS, BY CONSUMPTION DECILES, 1996

Table 28. Pensions as a per cent of the average after-tax wage

The institutional response to lay-offs

Employment protection

Unemployment benefits and severance pay

Job-search requirements

Possible problems with severance pay

Active labour market policies (ALMPs)

Notes

Bibliography

Annexes

Annex I - The package of ""100 laws''

Annex II - The agricultural sector

The agricultural sector until end-1996

Table A1. Basic indicators of Romanian agriculture

Land ownership

Table A2. Ownership structure of Romanian agriculture, 1997

State-owned farms

Purchasing, storage and distribution

Price controls

External trade

Financial support for agriculture

The buffer role of agriculture

Current reform programme

Annex III - The "energy problem" in Romania

Table A3. Aggregate indicators of energy intensity

Table A4. Cross-country comparisons of energy intensity

Table A4. Cross-country comparisons of energy intensity (cont.)

Figure A1. ENERGY RELATED EMISSIONS

Table A5. Cross-country comparison of greenhouse-gas emissions

Annex IV - Strain and structural change

Figure A2. ILLUSTRATION OF ONE STRAIN INDICATOR

Table A6. Structural adjustment in the labour market: a cross- country comparison

Annex V - Features of social protection.

Table A7. Institutional description of main social protection programmes in Romania 1997

Table A7. Institutional description of main social protection programmes in Romania 1997 (cont.)

Annex VI - Regional dimensions of economic activity

Figure A3. THE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT INDEX AND UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

Annex VII - Competition policy

Price regulation

Annex VIII - Chronology of economic events

Annex IX - Statistical annex

Table A8. GDP by expenditure

Table A9. Industrial production

Table A9. Industrial production (cont.)

Table A10. Monetary survey

Table A11. General government consolidated budget 1997

Table A11. General government consolidated budget 1997 (cont.)

Table A12. Selected demographic and social indicators

BASIC STATISTICS: INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS

BASIC STATISTICS: INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS (cont'd)

MAIN SALES OUTLETS OF OECD PUBLICATIONS / PRINCIPAUX POINTS DE VENTE DES PUBLICATIONS DE L'OCDE

Boxes

Box 3. Programming further liberalisation of capital movements.

Box 4. Instruments of monetary policy.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on print version record.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

92-64-15158-3

OCLC:

1225549799