Romania has already surpassed seven EU member states with a lower GDP per capita, and we are on the rise, Finance Minister Tanczos Barna said on Saturday.

'If we look at the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the recovery of the gaps compared to other EU member states, we can see from Eurostat, the official statistics of the European Union, that Romania has already left behind seven member states with a lower GDP per capita than Romania, and we are very close to Estonia, and we are on the rise. This is important because Poland, Hungary, Croatia, Slovakia, Latvia, Greece, and Bulgaria, countries with solid economies, are behind us. We can say, without a doubt, that Romania can rely on solid economic growth, with a growing and developing economy,' the minister said during a briefing at the end of the Government meeting in which this year's budget was approved.

He pointed out that this development is, on one hand, due to positive economic trends, with one of the most important elements being the evolution of labour productivity.

'We can see that we have left behind the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and in this regard, Romania is now at the forefront of this group, which includes Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary and Poland. So, regarding labour productivity, the signs are encouraging. The structural developments of the last 10 years also show a gradual reduction in the number of people employed in agriculture and an increase in the number of people in the service and industrial sectors. This is also beneficial for the economy. Agricultural productivity is growing significantly, mainly due to investments,' explained Tanczos Barna.

According to him, investments continue to be the engine of this economic growth, and Romania can strengthen its position with the support of the National Bank of Romania.

'The reserves of the National Bank, the international reserves, are increasing, and this provides stability and credibility to Romania. This is a positive thing. These are the elements that, in practice, create the premises for a 2.5% economic growth in 2025,' the Finance minister highlighted. AGERPRES (RO - author: Nicoleta Gherasi, editor: Mariana Nica; EN - editor: Adina Panaitescu)