Romania’s government is expected to discuss on November 14 in first reading the budget planning for 2014, Ziarul Financiar daily announced. Romanian officials discussed the budget planning for next year, as well as a revised version of this year’s budget with the IMF and the EC a couple of weeks earlier when their representatives ran a first review of their 2013-2015 agreements with Romania.

The cash deficit of the budget is planned to narrow from 2.5% of GDP this year to 2.2% in 2014. The government expects GDP to reach RON 658.6bn (EUR 148bn) in 2014 – up from RON 626.2bn in 2013 – driven by 2.2% real GDP growth rate. The exchange rate would remain steady from this year at RON 4.45 against the euro. End-year headline inflation is projected at 3% for next year – up from 1.8% projected by the central bank for the end of 2013.

Budget revenues would increase by 5.2% y/y to RON 216.8bn in 2014, thus remaining at a modest 32.9% of GDP ratio. Besides the conservative projection, the government considers freezing 10% of the ministries’ budgets until the second budget adjustment scheduled for the autumn [Oct-Nov]. The move would be aimed at avoiding problems caused by actual revenues falling significantly below the targets during the year.

Budget expenditures would increase by only 4.3% y/y under the budget planning, at a slower rate then revenues, to RON 231.3bn [35.1% of GDP].