Report: the most important reason to invest in Romania is that it provides access to the European single market
Market access, competitive salaries, quality of life and reduced taxes are among the 10 reasons why investors should invest in cities in Romania, reads a report put together by the RISE Consortium Global Investment Platform.
The report shows that the most important reason to invest in Romania is that it provides access to one of the largest markets in the world, namely to the European single market. According to the World Bank data, per capita consumption in the European Union is 26,946 dollars, while globally it stands at 7,581 dollars. By comparison, Italy, one of Romania's main trading partners, annually consumes more than India, a country with a 1.31 billion population.
The second reason is that cities in Romania have the strongest growth pace in the European Union. Between 2000 and 2013, EU cities with the strongest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth pace per capita in terms of purchasing power parity were Timisoara, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and Craiova, followed by Sofia (Bulgaria ), Brasov, Iasi and Constanta.
Another reason is that cities in Romania have some of the strongest connectivity improvement rates in the world. Air traffic has increased significantly for most major airports in Romania, with the airport in Craiova registering over 40 percent increase between 2005 and 2016. Moreover, almost every Romanian airport has benefited from investments and upgrades in recent years.
Companies in cities in Romania have also seen a rapid increase in revenue over the past few years. Between 2011 and 2015, the annual rate of company revenue growth ranged between 3.69 pct in Bucharest and 22.94 pct in Targu Jiu.
In addition, cities in Romania are becoming increasingly enticing to migrants and commuters. Almost every city has a functional urban area that exceeds its administrative boundaries and the labour force is mobilized from a wide territory.
Another reason is that average salaries in Romanian cities are competitive, ranging from 882 euro in Bucharest to 470 euro in Suceava, with a national average of 662 euro, according to the National Institute of Statistics.
Furthermore, cities in Romania offer a good quality of life and at the same time one of the lowest costs in the world. If in London you have to earn 4,500 pounds per month, in Romania you only need to earn 1,365 pounds per month to have the same standard of living. The low taxation has its contribution to this, Romania having one of the lowest levels of taxation on the continent. The standard tax on companies is 16 pct, almost half the taxes in France, Germany or Italy. In addition, tax incentives include tax exemptions for reinvested earnings.
Last but not least, cities in Romania have invested in improving infrastructure and conditions for investors and the public, and local administrations are paying attention to the needs of investors. With the improvement of infrastructure, cities are increasingly interconnected, forming large urban networks.
According to the information published on its website, RISE Consortium is a global investment platform that aims to contribute to Romania's development: on the one hand, through full consultancy, assistance, analysis and support services for foreign investors who want to invest in Romania and, on the other hand, for local companies wishing to expand their operations abroad.