The economic news from October 5–12 shows both the slowdown in Romania’s economy and the emergence of several striking business opportunities.
According to revised data, GDP no longer fell in the second quarter compared with the previous quarter, but it also failed to grow, while household consumption remains a major drag. Meanwhile, a company from Odorheiu Secuiesc is behind the sole bid in a €525 million tender for the Turceni gas-fired power plant, while ANAF is preparing to identify sellers who do not issue invoices with increasing precision. Tourism has lost nearly half a billion lei because of the decline in holiday vouchers, dependence on imports continues to rise in the dairy sector, and companies in the timber and cattle industries face new EU obligations.
1. Romania’s economy has stalled: household consumption is pulling GDP down: According to the latest INS data for the second quarter, Romania’s GDP was unchanged from the first quarter, while the seasonally adjusted figure showed a 1.9% year-on-year decline. The unadjusted annual decrease was smaller, at 0.2%. For the first half as a whole, seasonally adjusted GDP was 1.6% below the level recorded in the same period of 2025.
The details show clearly where the problem lies: household consumption volume fell by around 3.1% and, on its own, reduced GDP growth by 1.9 percentage points. Investment, however, remained strong. Weaker consumption is also confirmed by other data: in the first eight months of 2026, retail turnover volume fell by roughly 5% compared with the same period a year earlier. This is particularly concerning for retail and service businesses that depend on household demand.
2. A company from Odorheiu Secuiesc is behind the sole bid in a €525 million gas-fired power-plant tender: From a Szeklerland perspective, this is one of the most interesting developments of the week. Only one bid was submitted for the construction of the planned 475 MW combined-cycle gas-fired power plant at Turceni, and it came from Berdia SRL of Odorheiu Secuiesc. The estimated procurement value is about €525 million plus VAT, and the deadline for evaluating the bid has been extended to October 30.
Berdia, which recorded turnover of around RON 10 million in 2025, is backed mainly as a partner and subcontractor by the Chinese state-owned Dongfang Electric International Corporation, a major global manufacturer of energy equipment and builder of power plants. The bidding consortium has also involved other Chinese, Romanian and Hungarian companies. If the contract is signed, a relatively small company from Odorheiu Secuiesc could emerge as the lead bidder in an energy investment of national importance worth several hundred million euros.
3. ANAF could send sellers who do not issue invoices notices containing exact amounts and platform names: The tax authority is preparing a new approach for people who sell products or services without issuing invoices. Future notices would no longer contain only general warnings, but could say, for example: “You received amount X from platform Y during period Z.” The message could therefore include the transaction amount, the platform involved and the relevant period.
ANAF president Adrian Nica says it is mistaken to believe that income received without an invoice cannot be identified. The authority monitors money flows appearing in bank accounts, while cash-on-delivery amounts collected through courier companies can also be traced. This is an important signal particularly for online sellers, people selling through social media and service providers using digital platforms: the digital payment and logistics chain leaves an increasing amount of verifiable data behind.
4. Nearly half a billion lei has disappeared from domestic tourism because of the decline in holiday vouchers: In the first eight months of 2026, the value of holiday-voucher reimbursements reaching tourism businesses fell by 48.95% compared with the same period a year earlier. Hotels, guesthouses and other providers received RON 518.55 million, down from more than RON 1.01 billion a year earlier. The difference is RON 497.15 million.
According to ANAT, the main reasons are the narrowing of the voucher programme and the reduction in the number of beneficiaries. The industry organisation has warned that the trend could lead to the closure of some accommodation businesses and the loss of jobs. The news is particularly relevant to Szeklerland, where many rural guesthouses and smaller hotels rely significantly on domestic Romanian tourism and holiday vouchers for revenue.
5. Romania imports €1 billion worth of milk and dairy products while exports barely reach €283 million: In 2025, Romania imported milk and dairy products worth around €1 billion, while exports amounted to only €283 million. The gap is particularly striking given that the country has one of Europe’s largest areas of pastureland – the second largest, according to ZF.
In Szeklerland, this is more than a national statistic. Harghita, Covasna and Mureș counties have significant cattle populations and long traditions in milk production and processing, so the import-export balance also points to the fact that one of the problems facing domestic agriculture is not necessarily a shortage of raw material, but rather processing capacity, productivity, the sales chain and competitiveness. A trade gap of several hundred million euros a year also indicates a substantial market opportunity for domestic producers and processors.
6. New EU obligations are coming in December for the timber, furniture, rubber and cattle sectors: Under the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the economic operators concerned must demonstrate that products placed on the EU market or exported from the EU are not linked to deforestation or forest degradation. The rules cover, among other things, timber, cattle, rubber, soy, coffee and cocoa, as well as some products made from them – including OSB panels, furniture, paper products and tyres.
According to the source, the compliance deadline is December 30, 2026 for large companies and June 30, 2027 for micro and small enterprises. The businesses concerned will have to submit a due-diligence statement through the European Commission’s system. In Szeklerland, where the timber industry, furniture production and cattle farming carry significant weight, the rules may affect a larger-than-average number of companies.
7. Romanian companies’ foreign investments are approaching €10 billion: The accumulated value of investments made abroad by Romanian companies is already approaching €10 billion, and the figure increased by almost €700 million in the past year alone. This shows that more and more businesses in the Romanian economy are not merely exporting, but are also building their own foreign companies, factories, networks or other assets.
Another INS statistic shows that in 2024 Romanian corporate groups controlled 269 foreign subsidiaries, up from 210 a year earlier. These businesses employed approximately 17,700 people and generated RON 9.9 billion in turnover. Internationalisation is therefore no longer a feature of only a handful of large corporations, although the scale remains much smaller than the amount of foreign capital flowing into Romania.
8. Romania is Revolut’s fifth-largest market, and lending is the next target: Romania is already Revolut’s fifth-largest market worldwide, with around 5 million Romanian users. Kuba Fast, CEO of Revolut Bank, says the objective is no longer simply to keep expanding the customer base, but to make Revolut the primary bank for an increasing number of users.
The next major step could be an expansion in lending, while mortgage loans are not ruled out over the longer term. The company also plans to open a Bucharest office in 2027, giving it a visible physical presence. The development matters because it shows that financial services previously seen mainly as digital alternatives are becoming increasingly direct competitors to Romania’s traditional banks.
9. For a short period, solar power supplied two-thirds of Romania’s electricity generation: On October 5, at around 2:25 p.m., total generation in Romania’s power system was approximately 4,702 MW, of which about 3,000 MW came from photovoltaic sources. In other words, at that particular moment, nearly two-thirds of the electricity generated in the country came from solar power. Such a high share had not previously been typical.
It is important, however, to stress that this was a snapshot of generation at a particular moment; it does not mean that two-thirds of Romania’s daily or annual electricity production comes from solar power. The record nevertheless illustrates how quickly photovoltaic capacity has grown. This makes battery storage, more flexible timing of consumption and grid development increasingly important: during sunny periods, the question is no longer only how to generate enough energy, but also how to use or store the sudden surplus.
10. The European Commission has opened infringement proceedings against Romania over the taxation of stock-market gains made through foreign brokers: On October 1, the European Commission opened proceedings against Romania over the different tax treatment applied to investments. Investors trading through a Romanian intermediary have 3% or 6% tax withheld from their gains by the broker, while gains made by those using a foreign broker without a permanent establishment in Romania are taxed at 16%.
Brussels argues that this difference may make the use of financial intermediaries operating in other EU member states less attractive and could therefore infringe the freedom to provide services. The issue is directly relevant to the growing number of Romanian private investors and entrepreneurs using foreign investment platforms, because any legislative change could alter both their tax burden and their administrative obligations.
Summary
Perhaps the most important message from the week of October 5–12 is that Romania’s economy is now clearly being held back by weaker household consumption. GDP is stagnating, retail performance over the first eight months has declined, while in tourism the narrowing of the holiday-voucher programme has caused a revenue shortfall of nearly half a billion lei. At the same time, ANAF’s digital enforcement capabilities are becoming broader, while the EUDR is introducing new compliance tasks for several sectors that are also important in Szeklerland.
The week also has a more positive side. Romanian companies’ foreign investments are approaching the €10 billion mark, solar energy supplied two-thirds of the country’s electricity generation for a brief period, and a company from Odorheiu Secuiesc emerged as the sole bidder in a national-scale energy tender worth more than half a billion euros. The latter example shows particularly clearly that a smaller company originating in Szeklerland can, with international partners, take part in projects whose value far exceeds its own annual turnover.
As a number of major economic developments are continuing in parallel, readers interested in any particular subject are encouraged to search for the relevant terms online to access further analysis and additional details.
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