Romania
Everything Palanor holds about Romania, in one place: 191 public signals, what its economy runs on, how often America’s largest companies name it, the news that names it, and Country Posture. Every figure is computed from stored readings and carries its source and date.
EuropeEuropean Union
The latest read
- GDP in current U.S. dollars: $428.7 billion (2025); record high since 1987; 1y +12.1%.
- Real GDP growth: 0.68% (2025); 27th percentile since 1991; lowest since 2020; 1y −0.24 pts.
- Consumer price inflation: 7.19% (2025); 47th percentile since 1991; 1y +1.47 pts.
- Unemployment: 5.99% (2025); 36th percentile since 1991; highest since 2015; 1y +0.59 pts.
- Household consumption, share of GDP: 62% of GDP (2025); 21st percentile since 1990; 1y −0.46 pts.
- Net exports, share of GDP: -5.25% of GDP (2025); 57th percentile since 1990; 1y +0.76 pts.
Country Posture
What Romania’s economy is doing
Momentum
2025Inputs only. Did not pass the pre-registered back-test: 1996–2009: AUC 0.590 below 0.60; AUC 0.590 below the single-input baseline (0.624); 2010–2022: AUC 0.595 below 0.60; AUC 0.595 below the single-input baseline (0.641).
Inputs
| Real GDP growth | 0.7 |
| Growth against its three-year average | -1.8 |
| Change in unemployment | 0.6 |
| Change in the employment rate | -0.4 |
| Export volume growth | — |
| OECD leading indicator | — |
Resilience
202540Moderate buffers
0 = thin buffers · 100 = deep buffers
Moved most by reserves, months of imports (up) and governance (wgi mean) (down) since the year before.
Inputs
| Interest as a share of revenue (2024) | 7.3 | 34 |
| Budget balance (2024) | -8.8 | 5 |
| Reserves, months of imports | 5.5 | 66 |
| Current account | -7.9 | 21 |
| Governance (WGI mean) | 0.26 | 64 |
| External debt | — | — |
Pressure
2025Inputs only. Did not pass the pre-registered back-test: 1996–2009: AUC 0.657 below the single-input baseline (0.672).
Inputs
| Inflation | 7.2 |
| Change in inflation | 1.5 |
| Currency move against the dollar | -2.8% |
| Conflict deaths per million | 0.0 |
| Political stability | 0.21 |
| Private credit, three-year change | -3.2 |
| Bond spread over U.S. Treasuries | 2.6 |
Posture describes what an economy is doing; it is not a rating and never ranks countries. Each input is read against the country’s own history and against every other economy that year. An axis shows a score only after passing a back-test fixed before any result was computed. Method and back-test.
Country Schemas
Where Romania is in its cycles
Where Romania sits in eight long cycles, each read from published statistics against a method fixed before any reading was computed. A stage describes; it is not a rating, and no stage is better or worse than another.
- Development stage
Drive to maturity56% · 2025
Pre-take-offTake-offDrive to maturityHigh mass consumption20002025
- Demographic stage
Declining96% · 2025
High stationaryEarly expandingLate expandingLow stationaryDeclining20002025
- Debt cycle stage
Early cycle74% · 2025
Early cycleLeveragingLate cycleDeleveraging20002025
- External balance stage
Immature debtor75% · 2025
Immature debtorMature debtorDebt repayerImmature creditorMature creditorCredit disinvestor20002025
- Export structure stage
Manufacturing exporter95% · 2025
Commodity-reliantDiversifyingManufacturing exporterComplex exporter20002025
- Structural pressure
Building79% · 2025
LowBuildingHighAcute20002025
- Middle-class stage
Affluent97% · 2025
Pre-middle-classEmerging middle classMiddle-class majorityAffluent20002025
- Electoral cycle
Mid-term99% · 2026-10
Post-electionMid-termPre-election2021-012026-10
Passport reach
Where a Romania passport opens doors
The share of world GDP, outside Romania itself, in the economies whose published rules let a holder of this passport in, as of October 2026. Palanor records the rules of destinations holding 88% of world GDP, from each government’s own list, and weights them by World Bank GDP for 2025. Rank is among 199 passports.
Work
32.1%rank 26 of 199
the right to work (free movement in full; treaty and working-holiday routes at half); 30 destinations in full, 1 at half.
Recorded changes
Reach is shown here and not weighted into Country Strength: it rewards membership of a free-movement area or a treaty more than the strength of an economy. Entry is always at the border officer’s discretion, and conditions (length of stay, fees, age limits) vary. Method, sources and the full ranking: Passports and citizenship.
Palanor calculation from each destination government's published rules; GDP weights from the World Bank (CC BY 4.0), one year for the whole line, so it moves only when a list changes.
GDP by expenditure
What Romania’s economy runs on
In 2025, household spending was 62.0% of GDP, government consumption 17.3%, investment 25.9% and net exports -5.3% (exports 35.5%, imports 40.7%).
World Bank national accounts. The parts can miss 100 by a few points (the statistical discrepancy).
Same World Bank definition for every country, so the shares compare directly: What each economy runs on.
IMF World Economic Outlook
The IMF’s outlook for Romania
The latest year before the October 2026 edition (often still an IMF estimate) and the IMF’s own projections. These are the IMF’s published forecasts, shown as published; Palanor does not project them further. Since the previous edition the IMF cut its growth forecast for this year by 1.2 percentage points (Palanor calculation).
| Measure | 2025 | 2026 IMF f’cast | 2027 IMF f’cast | 2031 IMF f’cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real GDP growth% | 0.7 | -0.5 | 2.2 | 3.0 |
| Inflation, average consumer prices% | 7.3 | 8.2 | 4.1 | 2.3 |
| Unemployment rate% of labor force | 6.1 | 6.5 | 5.9 | 5.5 |
| GDP, current US dollarsUS$ bn | 429.3 | 470.1 | 500.0 | 627.3 |
| GDP at purchasing-power parityintl $ bn | 917.2 | 942.9 | 994.4 | 1,196 |
| GDP per person, US dollarsUS$ | 22,543 | 24,741 | 26,403 | 33,704 |
| Current account balance% of GDP | -7.9 | -7.0 | -6.7 | -5.0 |
| Government gross debt% of GDP | 60.4 | 62.6 | 64.9 | 71.3 |
| Government net debt% of GDP | 51.1 | 52.4 | 54.8 | 61.8 |
| Government overall balance% of GDP | -7.6 | -6.2 | -5.8 | -5.2 |
| Government primary balance% of GDP | -5.0 | -3.2 | -2.9 | -1.5 |
| Government net interest paid% of GDP · Palanor calc. | 2.6 | 3.0 | 2.9 | 3.7 |
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database (edition on the projection). Dashed: the IMF's published projection.
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database (edition on the projection). Dashed: the IMF's published projection.
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database, October 2026. Provided by the IMF “as is” and free of charge from the IMF; the IMF does not endorse Palanor. Net interest paid is a Palanor calculation: the IMF's primary balance minus its overall balance.
Charts
The headline series
Conflict
Organized violence
News
In the news
- Romania signs $2.3 billion air defense deal as Europe restocks
Rafael's largest contract ever comes as the U.S. Army tests robotic breach tools and EUCOM opens its doors to defense primes for the first time.
Palanor Wire2026-06-30positive · +deal
- Drone attacks on at least seven cargo vessels in the Black Sea this month, off the coasts of NATO members Romania and Bulgaria, has some members of the alliance wondering if Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking escalation to test their support for Ukraine in its war against Moscow’s invasion.
The Associated Press · Bluesky2026-10-16negative · -attacks -war
- Romania resumes search for seven missing sailors from drone-hit ship reut.rs/3Uzbccd
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-16neutral
- Romania's nominated prime minister secures support ahead of confidence vote reut.rs/4hYZXBD
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-15neutral
- When disaster strikes, the EU is there to help.
We are providing €134.8 million to support recovery in Spain and Romania following the major natural disasters that hit both countries in 2025.
Read more: link.europa.eu/Vdc6Qb
European Commission · Bluesky2026-10-08neutral · -strikes +recovery
- Romania orders 12 Airbus H225M multirole helicopters
Breaking Defense2026-10-07neutral
- Ballard secures 4.8 MW order for Romania’s first hydrogen train fleet
Marketaux (financial news API)2026-10-07neutral
- Planned Moldova-Romania power line to be named after Trump reut.rs/4hwTb79
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-06neutral
- Two dead, 11 rescued in serious maritime incident in Black Sea, Romania says reut.rs/4xYnDMf
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-05neutral
- Romania's newest wind farm may add solar, storage, as country faces energy crunch reut.rs/4j1YDjx
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-02neutral
Headlines that name Romania, matched by name with fixed rules (a wrong match is worse than a missing one). Tone is read from each headline’s own words; no model reads or summarizes an article, and other publishers’ stories link out.
Company graph
Companies headquartered in Romania
Palanor’s company graph holds 56 entities headquartered here (GLEIF headquarters address, else legal address).
Signals
Every series about Romania
Grouped by theme, the most-read first. All 191 in the Library.
Growth and output10 of 46
- Romania · GDP · USD bn (current)record high since 1987; 1y +12.1%$428.7bn2025
- Romania · Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Value Added · % of GDP4th percentile since 1990; 1y +0.19 pts3% of GDP2025
- Romania · GDP per Capita · PPP USDrecord high since 1990; 1y +3.7%50,895 usd2025
- Romania · Industry (incl. Construction) Value Added · % of GDP4th percentile since 1990; 1y +0.0899 pts25.3% of GDP2025
- Romania · Services Value Added · % of GDP96th percentile since 1990; 1y −0.806 pts61.7% of GDP2025
- Romania · Country Strength33rd percentile since 1991; 1y +2.4%42.4 index2025
- Romania · Manufacturing Value Added · % of GDPrecord low since 1991; 1y −1.37 pts11.8% of GDP2025
- Romania · Real GDP Growth · % y/y27th percentile since 1991; lowest since 2020; 1y −0.24 pts0.68%2025
- Romania · GDP per Person · €record high since 1995; 1y +7.8%20,100 € per person2025
- Romania · Household Net Financial Assets · % of disposable income66th percentile since 1995; lowest since 2019; 1y −4.64 pts85.2% of disposable income2025
Prices1 of 3
- Romania · Inflation · CPI % y/y47th percentile since 1991; 1y +1.47 pts7.19%2025
Jobs and people at work5 of 6
- Romania Unemployment Rate (Monthly, Eurostat)39th percentile since Jan 2000; 1y +0.3 pts6.4%2026-08-01
- Romania · Female Labor Force Participation · %21st percentile since 1990; lowest since 2013; 1y −0.09 pts41.8%2025
- Romania · Male Labor Force Participation · %82nd percentile since 1990; lowest since 2018; 1y −0.17 pts61.7%2025
- Romania · Unemployment Rate · %36th percentile since 1991; highest since 2015; 1y +0.59 pts5.99%2025
- Average annual hours worked · Romania53rd percentile since 1995; highest since 2011; 1y +0.4%1,835.8 hours2025
Money, rates and credit2 of 3
- Romania · Central Bank Policy Rate (IMF)43rd percentile since Dec 1993; 1y unchanged6.5%2026-04-01
- Romania 10-Year Government Bond Yield (Monthly)52nd percentile since Apr 2005; highest since Jan 2026; 1y −0.74 pts6.43%2026-08-01
Stock market and listed companies2
- Romania Share Prices (OECD, 2015 = 100)99th percentile since Sep 1997; 1y +57.7%453.62026-09-01
- Romania Share Prices, Change Over a Year (OECD)85th percentile since Sep 1998; lowest since Jan 2026; 1y +39.85 pts57.7% y/y2026-09-01
Government and debt10 of 13
- Romania · Budget Balance · % GDP (central govt)3rd percentile since 1981; lowest since 2020; 1y −2.31-8.81 pct_gdp2024
- Romania · Interest · % of Revenue (central govt)83rd percentile since 1985; highest since 2002; 1y +1.13 pts7.29%2024
- Romania · Interest · % of Expense (central govt)45th percentile since 1985; highest since 2016; 1y +0.05 pts3.87%2022
- Romania · Budget Balance · % GDP11th percentile since 1995; 1y +1.37-7.88 pct_gdp2025
- Romania · Government Debt · % GDP92nd percentile since 1995; highest since 1996; 1y +9.4%69.8 pct_gdp2025
- Romania · Government Spending · % GDPrecord high since 1995; 1y +0.1%43.3 pct_gdp2025
- Romania · Net Interest · % GDP85th percentile since 1995; highest since 2000; 1y +22.0%2.61 pct_gdp2025
- Romania · Net Interest · % of Government Spending82nd percentile since 1995; highest since 2001; 1y +1.08 pts6.02%2025
- Romania · Net Interest · USD bn (PPP)record high since 1995; 1y +28.1%$25.6bn2025
- Romania · Primary Balance · % GDP18th percentile since 1995; 1y +1.85-5.27 pct_gdp2025
Trade and capital flows3 of 4
- Romania · Current Account · % GDP22nd percentile since 1987; 1y +0.27-7.9 pct_gdp2025
- Romania · Net International Investment Position, % of GDP (IMF)32nd percentile since 1990; lowest since 2020; 1y −5.51 pts-45.2% of GDP2025
- Romania · Tourism Intensity: Nights per Resident (annual)93rd percentile since 1990; 1y −1.5%1.562025
Energy and resources10 of 18
- Romania · Business Electricity Price (incl. taxes) · € per kWh91st percentile since Jul 2007; 1y +9.7%0.22 € per kWh2026-01-01
- Romania · Household Electricity Price (incl. taxes) · € per kWh93rd percentile since Jul 2007; 1y +47.9%0.28 € per kWh2026-01-01
- Romania · Bioenergy Share of Electricity Generation87th percentile since 2000; highest since 2022; 1y +0.04 pts0.95% of generation2025
- Romania · Carbon Intensity of Electricity6th percentile since 2000; 1y −0.2%259.2 gCO2e/kWh2025
- Romania · Coal Share of Electricity Generation10th percentile since 2000; highest since 2022; 1y +0.04 pts15.1% of generation2025
- Romania · Electricity Generationrecord low since 2000; 1y −5.4%49.9 TWh2025
- Romania · Gas Share of Electricity Generation67th percentile since 2000; 1y −0.42 pts16.9% of generation2025
- Romania · Hydro Share of Electricity Generation17th percentile since 2000; lowest since 2017; 1y −2.68 pts24.2% of generation2025
- Romania · Nuclear Share of Electricity Generation90th percentile since 2000; 1y −0.23 pts20.5% of generation2025
- Romania · Other Fossil Fuels Share of Electricity Generation10th percentile since 2000; highest since 2022; 1y +0.02 pts0.36% of generation2025
Conflict and geopolitics7 of 13
- U.S. Active-Duty Troops in Romania (DMDC)29th percentile since Sep 2008; lowest since Jun 2021; 1y −14.1%128 persons2026-08-31
- Romania · Organized-Violence Deaths (UCDP, annual)record low since 1989; 1y unchanged0 deaths2025
- Romania · State-Based Conflict Deaths (UCDP, annual)record low since 1989; 1y unchanged0 deaths2025
- Romania · Governance · WGI six-dimension mean69th percentile since 1996; lowest since 2018; 1y −11.4%0.26 index2025
- Romania · Political Stability · WGI46th percentile since 1996; lowest since 2018; 1y −31.0%0.21 index2025
- Romania · Regulatory Quality · WGI28th percentile since 1996; lowest since 2005; 1y −22.3%0.27 index2025
- Romania · Rule of Law · WGI57th percentile since 1996; lowest since 2013; 1y −4.8%0.3 index2025
Aid in and out2
- Romania · Foreign Aid (Official Development Assistance) · US$ billions81st percentile since 2018; 1y −4.1%0.56 US$ billions2025
- Romania · ODA as % of GNI50th percentile since 2018; lowest since 2022; 1y −0.02 pts0.14% of GNI2025
Migration4 of 6
- International Migrant Stock: Romania (UN)record high since 1990655,579 people2024
- International Migrants as a Share of Population: Romania (UN)record high since 19903.45% of population2024
- U.S.-Born People Living in Romania (UN)record high since 19909,431 people2024
- Change in Migrant Share of Population Since 2000: Romania (UN)2.842024
AI stance and technology3 of 5
- Romania · R&D Spending per Person · € per inhabitant96th percentile since 1991; 1y −3.1%85.22024
- Romania · R&D Spending · % of GDP43rd percentile since 1995; 1y −0.06 pts0.46% of GDP2024
- AI User Share: Romania (Microsoft AI Diffusion)1y +2.70 pts18% of people aged 15-642026-06-30
Climate and the physical world6 of 8
- Romania CO₂ Emissions (Global Carbon Budget)64th percentile since 1858; 1y +1.0%68.6 Mt CO₂2024
- Romania Cumulative CO₂ Emissions (Global Carbon Budget)record high since 1858; 1y +0.8%8.86 Gt CO₂2024
- Romania · Arable Land · % of land2nd percentile since 1961; 1y −0.12 pts36.4% of land area2024
- Romania · Renewable Freshwater · m³ per person91st percentile since 1961; highest since 1965; 1y +0.4%2,2252022
- Romania · Forest Area · % of landrecord high since 1990; 1y +0.02 pts30.2%2024
- Romania · PM2.5 Exposure · µg/m³record low since 1990; 1y −2.7%13.9 µg/m³2020
Health and living standards10
- Romania · Life Expectancy at Birth · yearsrecord high since 1960; 1y +0.1%76.5 years2024
- Romania · Access to Electricity · % of populationrecord high since 1990; 1y unchanged100%2024
- Romania · Human Development Index · UNDPrecord high since 1990; 1y +0.6%0.85 index2023
- Romania · Extreme Poverty ($3.00 a day) · % of population8th percentile since 1989; lowest since 1992; 1y −0.8 pts0.7%2023
- Romania · Basic Drinking Water Access · % of populationrecord high since 2000; 1y unchanged100%2024
- Romania · Safely Managed Drinking Water · % of populationrecord high since 2000; 1y +0.06 pts82.2%2024
- Romania · Undernourishment · % of populationrecord high since 2001; 1y unchanged2.5%2024
- Romania · Poverty at National Lines · % of populationrecord low since 2006; 1y −0.6 pts18.4%2024
- Romania · Never Physically Active Outside Work · % of people25.4% of people2025-12-31
- Romania · Physically Active Outside Work Daily · % of people22% of people2025-12-31
Sentiment and attention1
- Romania · Search Attention66th percentile since Sep 2021; lowest since Jan 4, 2026; 1y −28.8%37 index2026-09-20
More about this country1 of 17
- Romania · Exchange Rate per US Dollar (IMF)96th percentile since Jan 1957; 1y +4.0%4.53 per USD2026-08-01
Peers
Elsewhere in Europe
Alphabetical. Palanor does not rank countries.
AlbaniaAndorraAustriaBelarusBelgiumBosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatiaCzechiaDenmarkEstoniaFaroe IslandsFinlandFranceGermanyGibraltarGreeceGuernseyHungaryIcelandIrelandIsle of ManItalyJerseyKosovoLatviaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMaltaMoldovaMonacoMontenegroNetherlandsNorth MacedoniaNorwayPolandPortugalRussiaSan MarinoSerbiaSlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandUkraineUnited KingdomVatican City