Romania is now richer according to the criterion of Gross Domestic Product per capita (GDP/capita) expressed in purchasing power parity (PPP) than all its neighbors, for the first time in history, so if we look at the history of the transition in the region, Romania receives the “gold medal”, said Nicolae Alexandru-Chidesciuc, former economist at ING Bank Romania, and who now works in London for JP Morgan, as Head of EMEA EM Economics, and who is also Managing Director at the association of financial analysts CFA . He participated on Thursday at the CFA Central and Eastern Europe Investment Conference, at the Parliament Palace.
“If we look at the history of the transition in the region, I would give the gold medal to Romania. Where was Romania 20 years ago? If someone had told friends in Budapest then that Romania would be richer in terms of GDP per capita expressed in purchasing power parity (PPP), everyone would have thought it a joke. But it is true. For the first time in history, Romania is now richer, according to this criterion, than all its neighbors. Not everything is perfect, but you’ve done things surprisingly well. And the future is also good”, declared Nicolae Chidesciuc.
The silver medal, he says, goes to Poland: “It is the first country in the region to achieve the status of a developed country. Poland did incredibly well.” The bronze medal is awarded to Bulgaria, “not because it did as well, but because it started from a very low base”, says the economist.
