Ilie Bolojan named Romania's new Prime Minister amid political turmoil and budget crisis
Romanian President Nicusor Dan on Friday nominated Ilie Bolojan, leader of the pro-European National Liberal Party (PNL), as the country's next prime minister, ending weeks of political uncertainty following the annulled December presidential elections.
Bolojan, 56, currently Senate president, is known for his reformist credentials and administrative discipline. His appointment comes at a critical moment, with Romania facing a record-high budget deficit of 9.3% and lingering fears over foreign interference in its democratic institutions.
'Ilie Bolojan is best suited to make the necessary adjustments in the Romanian state apparatus,' President Dan said in a televised address.
Dan himself was elected in a May rerun, after the December vote was annulled amid allegations of Russian meddling.
The nomination must now be approved by parliament, which remains fragmented. Bolojan is expected to navigate a divided legislature while pursuing difficult economic reforms.
In a press conference last week, Bolojan acknowledged the challenges ahead.
'Romania is in a complicated situation. The new government will need to implement unpopular measures — including possible spending cuts and tax hikes.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
22 minutes ago
- First Post
Ukrainian drone strikes force Kremlin to scale down Navy Day celebrations
Russia dramatically scaled back its Navy Day festivities on Sunday due to mounting security concerns amid a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks. The Kremlin cancelled traditional warship parades in major port cities including St. Petersburg, with officials citing the need to prioritise public safety. read more Russian President Vladimir Putin, second left arrives to visit the frigate "Admiral Grigorovich" in Kronstadt, outside St. Petersburg during Navy Day celebration, Russia. AP Russia scaled back its Navy Day celebrations on Sunday, citing security concerns amid ongoing Ukrainian drone attacks that continue to challenge the Kremlin. Russian authorities called off the warship parades that are typically held to commemorate the annual Navy Day celebrations in St. Petersburg, the Kaliningrad region on the Baltic, and the far-eastern port of Vladivostok. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to reporters' questions about why the parade in St. Petersburg was called off, even as President Vladimir Putin arrived in his hometown to tour the navy headquarters, by saying that 'it's linked to the overall situation, security reasons, which are above all else.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Over the course of the night, 99 Ukrainian drones were shot down by Russian air defences, according to the Russian Defence Ministry. It claimed that 51 more drones were shot down close to St. Petersburg later that day. According to local officials, a woman was injured by drone fragments in the Lomonosov area. Due to the drone threat, the Pulkovo airport in St. Petersburg halted dozens of flights early on Sunday. Putin paid a visit to St. Petersburg's historic Admiralty headquarters to receive reports on four-day naval manoeuvres that ended on Sunday. 150 vessels from the Baltics to the Pacific participated in the July Storm exercise. In addition to promising to increase the navy's training and build more warships, Putin also stated that 'the navy's strike power and combat capability will rise to a qualitatively new level.' He also visited the Admiral Grigorovich frigate of the Baltic Fleet at the Kronstadt naval base just west of St. Petersburg to hail its crew for fending off a Ukrainian drone attack in the region earlier in the day. Reducing the scale of the Navy Day celebrations reflects Moscow's worries about Ukraine's sweeping drone attacks across the country. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In a series of strikes earlier in the war now in its fourth year, Ukraine sank several Russian warships in the Black Sea, crippling Moscow's naval capability and forcing it to redeploy its fleet from Russia-occupied Crimea to Novorossiysk. And in an audacious June 1 attack code-named 'Spiderweb,' Ukraine used drones to hit several Russian air bases hosting long-range bombers across Russia, from the Arctic Kola Peninsula to Siberia. The drones were launched from trucks covertly placed near the bases, taking the Russian military by surprise in a humiliating blow to the Kremlin. The raid destroyed or damaged many of the bombers that had been used by Moscow to launch aerial attacks on Ukraine, providing a major morale boost for Kyiv at a time when Kyiv's undermanned and under-gunned forces are facing Russian attacks along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line. Russia continued to batter Ukraine with drone and missile strikes Sunday. In Sumy in Ukraine's northeast, a drone attack damaged civil infrastructure objects, an administrative building and non-residential premises, leaving three people wounded. Elsewhere in the region, two men died after being blown up by a land mine and another woman was injured from a drone attack on another community in the region, the regional military administration said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD French President Emmanuel Macron had a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday and said later on X that he reaffirmed France's support for Kyiv and vowed to raise pressure on Moscow to force it to 'agree to a ceasefire that paves the way for talks leading to a solid and lasting peace, with full European involvement.'
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
22 minutes ago
- Business Standard
EM debt hedge funds eye safeguards as world-beating rally blooms
Hedge funds dedicated to emerging-market debt are increasingly turning to risk-mitigating strategies to ensure they lock in double digit gains as a broad rally in developing nation assets deepens. After a banner first half of the year, hedge funds targeting EM debt have returned nearly 13 per cent on an annual basis — more than their peers positioned in any other asset class, according to data based on Bloomberg indexes. The latest global financial flows data shows the asset class remains thriving and the extra yield investors demand to hold the sovereign debt of developing nations over US Treasuries just hit a 15-year low. Such tight pricing, along with uncertainty over US policies and global conflicts, is pushing hedge funds to curb risks as they ride the historic rally. The funds do this by swapping longer-maturity bonds in their portfolios for less risky shorter-dated ones. They also focus on higher-rated debt and the most-liquid securities while keeping an ample cash pile. 'Do you just want to be massively long on credit on these valuations? I'd say probably not,' said Anthony Kettle, who co-manages BlueBay Emerging Market Unconstrained Bond Fund with Polina Kurdyavko and Brent David. 'Having a little bit of dry powder evidently makes sense, and also running elevated cash levels.' To be clear, Kettle said, there's still a 'decent environment' to gain additional returns as funds become more selective and can profit from both rising and falling asset prices, unlike index-based investors. The $784-million BlueBay fund has returned 17 per cent over the past 12 months. Investors have taken advantage of EM inflows stoked by increased interest for alternative assets amid US policy unpredictability, which has also weakened the dollar. While many developing countries have come out of distressed debt levels as sentiment improved, further risks include another Iran-Israel flare up and potential additional increases in US tariffs, including on the buyers of Russian energy. President Donald Trump's administration has caused a 'breakdown of the traditional safe haven correlations' by shaking up the post-Cold War world order, creating an 'unusual and unpredictable' environment, said Demetris Efstathiou, the chief investment officer of Blue Diagonal EM Fixed Income Fund. 'It is very hard to predict what they will do next with tariffs, and on top of that you have ongoing wars,' Efstathiou said. His fund is 'very conservatively' positioned with shorter-maturity bonds and he avoids weak credits to protect the portfolio in the event of a global slowdown and market downturn. He has increased holdings of AAA- and AA-rated EM sovereigns along with less-indebted countries with large domestic markets like Brazil, Turkey and Mexico. EM-dedicated bond funds have received $31 billion in inflows year-to-date, with positioning increased in each of the last 14 weeks as global markets recalibrate after an era of US dominance. A near-record $5.7 billion piled into the asset class in the week though July 23, according to EPFR Global data provided by economists at Bank of America Corp. For some, flows of such a magnitude signal that EM debt is alrdy predicting the best-case scenario. 'The market is now priced for a Goldilocks scenario with the risk of a severe recession receding significantly and expectations' of one or more rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, the $847 million Enko Africa Debt Fund said in a letter to clients. Managed by Alain Nkontchou, the Africa-specific hedge fund has returned 24 per cent over the past year. Nevertheless, the expected volatility means that traditional buy-to-hold trades may not necessarily succeed and that hedge funds will prioritize holding more liquid assets to ensure an easier exit in case sentiment turns, according to ProMeritum Investment Management LLP, a $700-million fund that invests in developing markets outside China. 'Liquidity management will be critical in the second half of the year because of an unpredictable environment and geopolitical risks,' said Evgueni Konovalenko, managing partner and head of strategy at the firm. Such a focus is needed 'to take advantage of both short and long positions with sudden policy changes and a daily barrage of headlines.' What to Watch: Markets will look out for any trade talks with the US ahead of the Aug 1 deadline for Trump's latest tariffs to take effect China manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI; second-quarter GDP data for Taiwan and Mexico, South Korea export data Brazil, Chile and South Africa central bank meetings on benchmark interest rates; South Africa may cut rates by another 25 basis points to 7 per cent, despite the likely rise in inflation later this year. (With assistance from Jorgelina do Rosario)
Time of India
39 minutes ago
- Time of India
What is Golf Force One? Trump's armoured buggy patrols Scottish golf course; protest threat triggers security upgrade
Trump, Golf foce one (AP, X images) During Donald Trump 's visit to his Turnberry golf course in South Ayrshire, Scotland, on Saturday, an armoured golf cart nicknamed "Golf force one" was deployed for his security. The reinforced buggy followed him throughout the game. The buggy, believed to be a reinforced Polaris Ranger XP, appeared heavily armoured,and could serve as a quick getaway vehicle in case of an attack. The black vehicle has drawn comparisons to 'The Beast', the bulletproof car used to transport US presidents. 'From those photos, that is 100 per cent armored. The windscreen is a giveaway, as are the side panels, doors, and the large panel at the rear above the load tray,' a car armor expert told The Telegraph. A US secret service spokesperson didn't confirm specific details to Daily Mail, saying only that the agency uses 'a variety of tools' to keep protectees safe. Trump has often said he feels at home in Scotland, where his late mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was born on the Isle of Lewis. But Trump faced demonstrators gathered in Edinburgh and other UK cities, calling the visit part of a broader problem with Trump's politics. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Harry Potter Star Surprises Fans with New Look. The Noodle Box Read More Undo Many held signs and marched as part of the 'Stop Trump coalition.' One 15-year-old protester in Edinburgh, Amy White, held a sign reading, 'We don't negotiate with fascists.' 'We're here together because we hate him,' she said. At the golf course itself, a lone protester, Matt Halliday, managed to breach the tight security to display signs linking Trump to Jeffrey Epstein and mocking him with a message about bagpipes. Despite the protests and heavy security, Trump played the full round with his son Eric and ambassador Warren Stephens.
