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The paper analyzed the development in the NUTS 2 of Romania in the year 2022 using a large spectrum of socioeconomic criteria including 32 indicators, destined especially to emphasize the contribution of agriculture to the social and economic growth. The data were picked up from the National Institute of Statistics and Eurostat database. The processing methodology included: structural indices, comparisons among regions, rank-order method to establish the hierarchy based on the region performance. The results reflected the population polarization in North East, South Muntenia, North West and South East and also in Bucharest-Ilfov. Rural population and the one dealing with agriculture is concentrated in North East, South Muntenia, North West and South East. But, the occupied persons in the economy are in Bucharest Ilfov, North West, Center and West. The largest cultivated area and the highest value of agricultural production are in South Muntenia, South East, South West Oltenia, West and North East. The highest value of agricultural production per inhabitant is in South Muntenia, South East, South West Oltenia, West and North East. Labor productivity is higher in Bucharest Ilfov, West, North West and Center. The highest average monthly income, expenditures and savings rate per household is in Bucharest Ilfov, North West, Center and West. Income from agriculture per household is higher in North East, West, South East and North West, while per person is higher in Bucharest Ilfov, South Muntenia, North West and South East. GDP has the highest level is in Bucharest Ilfov, West, Centre, North West, while in North East, South Muntenia, South West Oltenia and South East is lower. In 2022, Romania achieved Euro 26,700 per capita (PPS) (75% of the EU average), coming on the 22 position among the other EU countries. Based on all these criteria, the final hierarchy of the NUTS 2 regions in Romania in 2022 was in the decreasing order: South Muntenia, South East, North West, West, Center, Bucharest Ilfov, South West Oltenia and North East which reflects the existence of discrepancies among regions. Romania has to intensify its efforts to assure a higher rate of economic growth on the principle of equity in the territory and reach a balanced and harmonized economic and social development which, also, have to reduce the gaps compared to the other NUTS 2 regions. For attaining this objective, Romania must to use the EU (TFEU) cohesion funds (2021-2027) to strengthen its economic, social and territorial cohesion and to assure a harmonious and balanced development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to analyze milk resources availabilities and utilizations in their dynamics in the period 2014- 2021 pointing out the state of production, import, export and availabilities for human consumption in order to assess in what measure food security and efficiency in milk trade are assured. The data provided by National Institute of Statistics were processed using fixed basis index, regression equations, determination coefficient, graphically illustration and comparison method. In 2021 versus 2014, the results reflected that: utilizable internal production declined by 9.3%, accounting for 51,750; availabilities for human consumption remained relatively stable, in 2021 being 48,881 thousand hl (+ 0.53%). The weight of availability of milk for human consumption in utilizable internal milk production increased from 85.21 % to 94.45%. Import reached 12,988 thousand hl, being 2.58 times higher. The share of import in availability for human consumption increased by 16.28 pp, reaching 26.57%. Milk export was by + 57.28% higher attaining 3,152 thousand hl. The share of export in utilizable production went up from 3.51% to 6.09%. Export/import ratio declined from 0.40 in 2014 to 0.24 in 2021, reflecting a negative milk trade balance. Milk consumption per capita reached 255.6 kg in 2021, being by 4.66% higher than in 2014. In 2021, a Romanian could consume in average 721.3 g milk per day compared to 689.1 g in 2014. The self-sufficiency rate decreased from 95% in 2014 to 84.02 % in 2021, due to the decline in utilized internal production. To diminish milk crisis, it is needed to offer more subsidies for sustaining dairy farming and to stop the decline in the number of dairy cows, in milk production and marketed milk and reduce imports. Processors have to offer Euro 0.5 per milk kg to Romanian farmers and not a discriminatory price of Euro 0.2.-03. Imports have to be reduced and export to be encouraged after assuring the market requirements by internal production. In this way, both self-sufficiency rate and the efficiency in milk trade could be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this article is the analysis of crop rotation applied to three crop farms of different sizes in Romania. The period under study is before the implementation of the "Environmentally beneficial practices applicable to arable land" eco-scheme, included in the National Strategic Plan of Romania, 2023–2027, in the section on direct payments related to subsidies. The analysed crop farms have different areas, as follows: Farm A—64.97 ha, Farm B—615.50 ha and Farm C—2881.33 ha. This research aims to highlight the agro-environmental conditions specific to each farm that are required to be met by 2023. The data analysis highlights the fact that farms under 100 ha, such as Farm A, must apply the conditions of the eco-scheme as follows: 3.25 ha with non-productive elements, including uncultivated land; 6.50 ha cultivated with crops from the Leguminosae family, 16.25 ha cultivated with cereals, 19.49 ha cultivated with corn, 12.99 ha cultivated with sunflowers, 3.25 ha cultivated with watermelon and 3.25 ha cultivated with vegetables. These farms do not apply modern technologies and have fragmented surfaces, and must have both uncultivated areas and areas planted with nitrogen-fixing crops, but must also practice crop diversification. Farms of over 100 ha, such as Farm B, must have 30.78 ha of non-productive elements and 246.20 ha cultivated with crops from the Leguminosae family, of which 30.78 ha are perennial crops and 215.42 ha are annual crops, such as soy. Crop diversification is also recommended, with 92.33 ha cultivated with cereals, 184.65 ha cultivated with corn and 61.55 ha cultivated with oil crops, sunflower and/or rapeseed. Farms the size of Farm C must have 144.07 ha of non-productive elements, 720.33 ha must be cultivated with crops from the Leguminosae family, such as soy, and diversify crops as follows: 720.33 ha—cereals, 720.33 ha—corn, 518.64 ha—sunflower and/or rapeseed and 57.63 ha—potatoes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper emphasizes the importance of subsidizing agricultural activities, taking into account the climate changes that are more and more evident making agricultural holdings particularly vulnerable from an economic point of view, the most exposed being the small ones. The technical-economic the economic-financial analysis methods drew a technical-economic diagnosis of a small-scale vegetable farm in Romania, in order to highlight the major impact that subsidies have in achieving incomes that ensure the continuity of the activity. The vegetable farm under study was established in 2018, being included in the category of micro-enterprises paying income tax. It owns agricultural land exclusively on lease, the existing crops being those of wheat, corn, alfalfa, bell peppers and melons, with average productions/ha achieved similar to or below the average productions/ha recorded at national, regional and county level. From an economic and financial point of view, this holding presents a financial instability during the analysis period, based on the losses recorded in 2018 and 2020 and a non-compliant financial autonomy based on insufficient equity capital. It does not have the ability to generate constant profit during the period included in the study by capitalizing on production, it being small and insufficient, which denotes the major dependence on the income from exploitation subsidies in order to be profitable. Liquidity indicators evolve fluctuating and solvency is generally downward and positioned above the safety threshold, which places small-scale vegetable farms at risk of insolvency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed the evolution animal sector regarding livestock and production in Romania in the period 2007-2020. Two sub-periods: P1- 2007-2013 and P2 2014-2020 were compared for assessing if the achievements in P2 were superior. The data from the National Institute of statistics regarding livestock and production by species were processed using fixed basis index, structural index, regression equations, coefficient of determination, multi annual mean per decade, absolute and relative differences between P2 and P1, in order to emphasize the trends and changes during the studied period. The results emphasized the following: the number of bovines, pigs and poultry decreased, while the number of sheep and goats and bee families increased both in P2 and P1. The total animal live weight at slaughter diminished due to the lower and lower live weight of bovines and pigs. However, the increased live weight at slaughter of sheep, goats and poultry had a positive impact. Milk and egg production declined and continued in P2, while wool and honey production increased. Despite that agricultural production value in animal sector increased by +20,420 trillion Lei in 2020 versus 2007, it was by 68.61% smaller than the agricultural production value achieved in the vegetal sector. In consequence, the contribution of animal sector to agricultural output was just 31.39% in the year 2020. The gaps in domestic production have to be covered by imports to meet consumers' requirements and this will deepen the deficit in agro-food trade balance. The reduction of CO2 emissions in agriculture, where 50% come from animal sector, obliges farmers to set up strategies destined to promote animal products obtained from more environment friendly technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper purpose was to assess the impact of climate change on wheat, maize and sunflower yield in the period 2017-2021, using statistical data from National Institute of Statistics (NIS) and National Administration of Meteorology (NAM) and other sources. Comparison method was used to evaluate the deviations between the registered air temperatures and precipitations and the 1981-2010 climatological norm. Graphic method reflected the dynamics of monthly air temperatures and rainfalls in each year. Descriptive statistics for mean, standard deviation and coefficient of variation reflected an more comprehensive image upon air temperature, precipitations and yield. Correlations and regression equations were used to establish the intensity of the kinks between climate factors and yield. The highest average air temperature In Romania was 12.130C in 2019. In the period 2017-2020, the average annual temperatures exceeded the climatological norm 1981-2010 accounting for 9.10C. The lowest rainfalls, 614.2 mm, were recorded in 2019, being below of 633.1 mm the norm for the period 1981-2010. The high temperatures associated with drought and low precipitations have deeply affected yield of many agricultural crops, including maize, wheat and sunflower. The highest wheat yield 4,888 kg/ha was achieved in 2017, and the lowest one, 2,966 kg/ha in 2020. Maize registered the highest performance of 7,644 kg/ha in 2018, and the lowest one, 3,977 kg/ha in 2020. Sunflower carried out the high performance 3,041 kg/ha in 2018, and the lowest one, 1,858 kg/ha in 2020. The worst agricultural years for these three crops was 2020, but 2017 favored wheat, while 2018 favored maize and sunflower. The correlation coefficient had in general small values between average temperature and yield, but a higher link with precipitations level. The multiple correlation between yield, air temperatures and precipitations was: r= 0.817 for wheat, r = 0.116 for maize and r = 0.504 for sunflower. In the South Eastern Dobrogea, the driest area in Romania, the rainfalls declined by 65% in the period 2018-2020 having a deep negative impact on sunflower seeds yield, which decreased from 4,282 kg/ha in 2018, to 1,503 kg/ha in 2020. The correlation between precipitations and sunflower yield positive and very strong (r = 0.737). As a conclusion, the climate conditions should be analyzed in each farm and farmers have to take measure to adapt the technologies for sustaining production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper purpose was to analyze the present situation of the mountain areas in Romania from a sociodemographic, economic and environmental point of view in order to identify the main positive and negative aspects and to establish what objectives and measures have to be considered for assuring the sustainable development of the mountain regions in the coming future. The statistical data provided by Eurostat, FAO, National Institute of Statistics and National Agency for Mountain Areas were statistically processed in their dynamics using trend regression equations, graphical illustration and comparisons. The results pointed out that the Carpathians cover 37.8% of Romania's area and are predominantly rural. The share of the mountain municipalities is just 37.8%(12th position in Europe), the residents account for 5.53 million (6th position) meaning 25% in the total population (11th position), agriculture (mainly animal growing) and forestry are the main activities. In 2021, in the mountain regions there were registered 3,147 producers who carried out 1,164 mountain products, the highest weight belonging to vegetal, dairy and beekeeping products whose sale was assured by 135 Local Gastronomic Points. The contribution of the mountain areas to GDP was Euro 48.7 million, for which Romania came on the 8th position among other European countries. The actual challenges the mountain areas are facing are: the decline and aging of the population, migration of young people to the cities, weak infrastructure, livestock decrease, grasslands degradation, weak promotion of mountain products, lack of connectivity and communication between settlements, a low valorization of the natural and human resources. In consequence, as the Mountain Law provides, it is needed a new approach regarding the development of the mountain economy by valorizing in a more effective way all the resources, paying attention to the diversification of the activities, creating new jobs, stimulating entrepreneurship to increase production (agriculture, forestry, handicrafts etc) and encourage more services (education, medical, cultural, tourism, trade, credit etc), facilities for supporting young people to remain in the localities of origin, improving infrastructure (roads, bridges, houses and village restoration, connectivity to IT and mobile network, digitalization etc), involving both the local authorities and all the residents to intensify their efforts to support the mountain areas in their way to a sustainable development upwards 2030. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed Romania's agro-food export, import and trade balance with the EU-27 countries in the period 2013-2021 using the empirical evidence from National Institute of Statistics. Fixed basis and structural indices, as well as Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), Gini-Struck Index (GSI) and the Coefficient of Concentration (CC) were used to characterize the concentration degree of the agri-food trade. In 2021, export value accounted for Euro 5,471.8 Million, import value for Euro 8,459.7 Million and the trade balance registered a deficit of Euro -2,987.9 Million. The figures reflect an increase both in export and import, but import exceeded the export reflecting that Romania is a net importer of agro-food products. The highest market share in Romania's export is kept by Italy, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Hungary, France, Greece, Belgium and Poland, while the main import partners are Germany, Hungary, Poland, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, France, Greece and Belgium. The concentration degree both in case of export and import is small as proved by the values of HHI, ranging between 0.0845 and 0.0996 for export and between 0.1065 and 0.1106 for import. GSI values ranged between 0.2220 and 0.2406 for export and between 0.2687 and 0.2764 for import. CC values were below 0.5 also reflecting a competitive market. To diminish the dependence of imports, agro-food export has to be stimulated by the increase of agricultural production which has to provide more products with high value added and of a higher quality to enhance competitiveness, and also imports have to be revised and a better resource allocation is needed to strengthen internal production and cover better domestic consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed rural population, rural working age population, civil population occupied in agriculture and agricultural output value using the data from National Institute of Statistics for the period 2008-2020. Trend line, regression equations, coefficient of determination, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient represented the methodological means for processing the data. Romania had still a high labour resource accounting for 6.23 million persons in 2020, by 10% more than in 2008. In the period 2008-2020, the population able to work declined in almost all the regions, except North East and Bucharest Ilfov, but, the rural population having the age to work increased in various proportions in all the regions. However, civil population occupied in agriculture declined by - 30% from 2,407 thousand persons in 2008 to 1,681 thousand persons in 2020. Population aging and migration are the main causes of this decrease. The decline in the territory ranged between -31.3% in North East and -25% in Bucharest-Ilfov. Agricultural production value increased by +21.6% from Ron 66,993 Million in 2008 to Ron 81,400 Million in 2020. In 2020, the highest agricultural output value was achieved in South Muntenia, North East, North West, South West Oltenia, South East. Analyzing the linear dependency between the ranks of civil population occupied in agriculture and agricultural output value, we noticed that in 2008, it was not found such a connection, as Spearman's correlation coefficient was rS = 0.1004, tcrit 6;0.05 was 1,943 and RI = 0.4748 < 0.1943. However, in 2020, between the ranks of the two studied indicators was found a linear dependency reflected by rS = 0.739, RI = 2.26, tcrit 6;0.05 was 1,943, therefore RI > tcrit. As a final conclusion, while the population occupied in agriculture decreases, agricultural production value increases due to the decline in civil population occupied in this economic sector caused by aging and migration, increased performance in agricultural production, grace to technological progress and a better farm management, price volatility for agricultural products, financial support according to the CAP of the EU and Romania's Government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed the evolution of the surfaces where chemical fertilizers were used, total consumption of fertilizers and the average consumption per surface unit in Romania and also by micro-region of development in order to establish the trends in the use of the fertilizers, and its concentration degree in terms of Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, (HHI), Gini-Struck Index (GSI) and Coefficient of Concentration (CC). The empirical data were collected from National Institute of Statistics for the period 2007-2020. Romania's mineral fertilizer consumption accounts for 5% of the EU total consumption, for which the country is ranked the 7th after France, Germany, Poland, Spain, United Kingdom and Italy. Compared to the EU mean of 77.2 kg Nitrogen fertilizer consumed per ha UAA in the year 2018, Romania applied less than 60 kg, a level which is far away from over 100 kg used by Belgium, Netherlands, Czechia and Denmark. In 2020, the average consumption of mineral fertilizer in Romania reached 98.16 kg/ha, which is still lower than in the Western EU countries. In the year 2020, the average consumption in Romania was exceeded, in the descending order, only by the West, Bucharest-Ilfov, North West and South West Oltenia regions. If in 2007, it was observed an uniform consumption of fertilizers among the eight micro-regions of Romania, in 2020, a slight moderate concentration was noticed in terms of HHI, GSI and CC. The regions with the highest share in mineral fertilizer consumption in Romania, in the decreasing order, are: West, South Muntenia, South West Oltenia, North East, South East and North West regions. The EU policy regarding the sustainable development of agriculture reducing the use of chemical fertilizers for protecting environment, biodiversity and ensuring food safety is welcome, but it has to be adapted to the actual average consumption and also taking into account the local needs of each country regarding the growth of productivity, farmers' income and profit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aimed to analyze the trends in milling and baking industry in the EU-28 and Romania. During the period 2015-2019, the production of milling and bakery products increased as the need of the market is much higher. The offer of bakery products has been continuously adapted to consumer's preferences and assured a large range of bakery assortment for satisfying all the market segments. In the EU, the most representative countries operating in baking industry are Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, United Kingdom, Poland and Romania. The milling and bakery products market is dominated by SMEs, and production technologies are more and more industrialized while the traditional bakery is slowing down. In Romania, milling and baking sector is the top sector in food industry. The number of companies has increased, production technologies have been modernized, product quality is increasing, the production volume is higher and higher, productivity, turnover and profit have also an ascending trend and the competitiveness has become more intense in the business environment. This economic sector assures jobs, and creates value added contributing to GDP growth. Bread consumption reached 78kg/capita/year in average in the EU-28 while in Romania is 82 kg/capita, a little bit higher. The top companies in milling and bakery industry in Romania based on their turnover achieved in 2019 are: Vel Pitar, the leader in the field, followed by Oltina, Boromir, Dobrogea, Sapte Spice and GoodMills. Based on the five criteria used in this study, the hierarchy is almost similar: Vel Pitar, Oltina, Boromir, Sapte Spice, Dobrogea, and GoodMills. The milling and bakery industry has to continue to modernize infrastructure, to look for healthier ingredients in the recipes, to diversify production, to keep under control production costs reducing energy expenses, to increase product quality and assure a good ratio between product quality and price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research was focused on yields dynamics of the main agricultural crops: wheat, maize, barley, oats, sunflower and rape recorded in Romania and especially in Dobrogea region in =order to identify in what measure they were affected by climate change, mainly by drought in two decades: 2000-2009 and 2010-2019. For this purpose, there were calculated the negative deviations of yield in each year from the average of each decade, and also the differences between the average decade yield in Dobrogea region and at the country level. The results proved substantial negative deviations for almost all the crops compared to the decade averages, and a smaller production performance in Dobrogea region versus yield level in Romania. All these differences were caused by the change in climate factors: the increased air temperature, low of lack of precipitations, low or lack of water resource into the soil, which characterize the severe and strong droughts with which Romania, and mainly Dobrogea region were facing during the last 20 years. In order to reduce the economic, social and environmental impact of droughts, the authorities have to develop sustainable strategies in order to support agriculture with irrigation systems and other measures of protection (financial aid to cover losses, tax exemption, extending the terms of repayment of the debts etc), and farmers have to continue their efforts for adapting the technologies cultivating high production potential varieties and hybrids resistant to drought, diseases and pests, choosing the right moment and depth for sowing, fertilization level and plant protection. Only in this way, farmers could obtain a production performance able to cover costs and assure profitableness of their business. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed honey production concentration in Romania in the period 2009-2018 using the specific indicators: number of beekeepers, bee hives, honey production and yield per bee hive, and methods like: trend equation, Herfindhal-Hirschman concentration index (HHI), regression models, correlations and determination coefficients to examine the gains in comparison with the period 2007-2016. The results pointed out that both the number of bee colonies and honey production increased in a high measure, only honey yield remained stable (20 kg/year). In 2018, Romania came on important positions in the EU-28 top honey producing countries as follows: 2nd position for 1,689.5 thousand bee hives, 1st position for 30,000 tons honey production, 3rd position for 80 average number of bee hives per apiary, and 18th position for 20 kg honey yield per bee hive. In 2018, the distribution of the bee hives and honey production in the territory was: 18.5% South West Oltenia, 16.2% South East, 14.6% North West, 13.6% South Muntenia, 13.3 % North East, 12% Center, 10.6% West and 1.2% Bucharest-Ilfov. Compared to 2009, honey production increased in 2018 in almost all the micro-regions, except North East, where it remained stable. HHI indices had values below 0.15 reflecting a low concentration. Compared to the period 2007-2016, in the interval 2009-2018, the mean for the number of bee hives and honey production increased, the correlation and determination coefficients recorded higher values for the pair of indicators: honey production and the number of bee hives and for the honey production and yield, while for the average yield and the number of bee hives the values were smaller. Regression equations attested that honey production is about 50% determined by the number of bee hives and in smaller proportion by honey yield. Beekeeping has to continue to develop for assuring the pollination of the agricultural crops, the preservation of biodiversity and environment and for providing healthy products for consumers, jobs and incomes for the rural population. The EU and National Programmes for Apiculture will strengthen this sector keeping pace with the increased competitiveness on the EU honey market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed turnover indicators in terms of working capital (WCT), total assets (TAT) and fixed assets (FAT) on the profitableness in term of return on assets (ROA) and equity (ROE) of six companies, codified F1-F6, dealing with dairy farming in the surroundings of Bucharest, the capital of Romania in the period 2009-2018. Descriptive statistics, correlation and determination coefficients, as well as polynomial regression models were used to process the data in order to prove in what measure the increase of turnover could have a beneficial effect on effectiveness of the business. Despite that the firms are in the top for their financial results, it was noticed a large variation regarding the dynamics of sales and profit, but the general trend was an increasing one. Based on the indicators taken into account, the resulting hierarchy of the companies was F5, F2, F1, F3, F4 and F6. A weak relationship was found between WCT, TAT and FAT and ROA and ROE, with a few exceptions as follows: in F4, r =0.540 between WCT and ROA, r=0.703 between TAT and ROA, r = 0.806 between FAT and ROA and r=0.565 between WCT and ROE, in F5, r=0.565between WCT and ROE, and in F6 r = 0.601 between TAT and ROA and r = 0.525 between FAT and ROA. Another conclusion was that in F4, the variation of WCT and TAT could influence the variation of ROA, and the variation of FAT could influence the variation of ROE in a higher measure. The polynomial regression models showed that in F4, one more unit of TAT could determine an increased ROA by 0.2609, and one more unit of FAT could led to a higher ROA by 0.333 and of ROE by 0.970. In F5, one more unit of WCT could grow ROE by 3.895, and one more unit TAT will determine a higher ROE by 0.282. As a final conclusion, in financial management of the dairy companies turnover must be carefully managed in order to get a higher effectiveness and profitability of the business. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed the EU-28 oil seeds sector in terms of cultivated area, production and yield for rape and turnip rape, sunflower and soybean, based on the data provided by Eurostat for the period 2008-2018. Growth rate, index method, descriptive statistics, correlations and regression equations were used to identify the trends and connections between these indicators. In 2018, the EU-28 cultivated 11.8 million ha with oil seeds crops, of which 58% rape, 33.8% sunflower and 8 % soybean. Seeds production reached 35 million tonnes, being by 30 % higher than in 2008. The average yield accounted for 3.2 t/ha in case of rape, 2.4 t/ha sunflower and 2.8 t/ha soybean seeds. The main producers of rape seeds are France, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom and Romania, and in case of sunflower are Romania, Bulgaria, Italy and France. The correlations and regression models indicated that for increasing production, yield improvement of sunflower and rape and also cultivated surface of soybean to increase. The lack of incentives for oil seeds producers in the EU and the higher payments for protein crops in order to balance the protein deficit on the EU market and reduce imports, will affect oilseeds for sure producers and production. As a result, it is expected as soybean to be cultivated on larger surfaces and sunflower cultivated area to decline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The paper analyzed the dynamics of average monthly income (AMI) and average monthly expenditure (AME) per household and the relationships between these indicators of living standard in Romania in the period 2007-2017. The dynamic analysis, descriptive statistics, correlations, and regression functions were used to process data. The results pointed out that both AMI and AME per household increased in Romania, but income growth rate was higher than expenditure increase rate. In the rural area, AMI per household is 64.3 % of the urban average and 76.1 % of the national one. AME is the highest in the urban area. In the rural households it represents 77.1 % of the urban one and 85.6 % of the national average. A person living in the rural area spends three times less money than an urban citizen. The share of AME in the AMI decreased from 80.7 % in 2007 to 66.5% in 2017, because the income growth rate was higher than the spending rate. In the rural communities, this percentage was 74.9 in 2017, higher than in the urban area. The expenditures on food and non alcoholic beverages also increased, being higher in the urban area. The share of food and non alcoholic beverages in AME is 29 % in the rural area, the highest in the country. AME per household accounts for 61.1 % of GDP, placing Romania on the 8th position in the EU-28. Also, Romania comes on the top position for 17 % share of expenditure on food and non-alcoholic beverages in GDP. The correlations proved a high and positive connection between income and expenditure. According to the regression equations, an AMI increase by Lei 100 will increase AME by Lei 52.9 at the national level, by Lei 49.30 in the urban household, by Lei 58.96 in the rural household, will raise consumption expenditure on food and non alcoholic beverages by Lei 12.02 nationally, by Lei 10.39 in the urban household and by Lei 14.58 in the rural one. Household income is still lower in Romania compared to other EU countries. A new strategy is required to increase population's income in order to improve life quality and reduce the discrepancies with the other EU countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzed the status of Sorghum crop worldwide, in the EU and Romania regarding the cultivated area, production, yield and trade pointing out the main trends. The data provided by the Data bases of NIS and Faostat have been processed using usual methods such as fixed index and comparison. In 2017, the world Sorghum production reached 63.9 million tonnes, and the average yield 1,427 kg/ha. The main producers of Sorghum are the USA, Nigeria, Sudan, Mexico, Ethiopia and India. In 2017, the EU represented just 0.12% of the world area cultivated with Sorghum. and produced 755 thousand tonnes of grains,i.e.1.18% of the world output. But, the EU average yield is 5,580 kg/ha, being 3.81 times higher than the world mean. In main EU producers of Sorghum are: Italy, France, Spain, Romania, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria. In 2017, Romania cultivated 13,833 ha, representing 25.2% of the EU area and produced 54,282 tonnes Sorghum grains, i.e.7.18% to the EU output. Per surface unit, Romania carried out 3,879 kg/ha, 2.71 times more than the world mean and by 30% less than in the EU. Romania is also an important exporter of sorghum grains and the trade balance is positive. Due to the advantages of this crop and taking into account the need to mitigate the effects of climate change, the EU policy provides a new perspective to grow the cultivated surface and production. Romanian farmers must use new technologies, paying attention to high value hybrids, fertilization and plant protection to improve yield, and production. Romania has to keep its position as an important producer and exporter of Sorghum in the EU by developing this agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the paper was to analyze Romania's foreign trade with cereals in order to point out its efficiency by type of traded cereal in the period 2007-2016 using the empirical data provided by the National Institute of Statistics. The study required a large variety of specific indicators and methods to reach its goal. In the period 2007-2016, both cereal export and import value increased, accounting for Euro 2,097.2 Million export and for Euro 591.1 Million import. As a result, Romania is a net exporting country of cereals as its trade balance was Euro 1,505.1 Million. Also, the volume of cereal trade increased by 5.36 times, reaching Euro 2,689.3 Million in 2016, the export per inhabitant increased reaching Euro 106.13/capita, and the coverage degree of import by export was 3.54 by 6 times higher than in 2007. In 2016, in the agro-food trade of Romania, cereals represented 35% in the export value and 9% in the import value. In 2016, the share of various cereals in the cereal export value accounted for: wheat 55.3%, maize 34.4% and barley 9.15%, all together totalizing 98.85%, while the share of these cereals in cereal import value accounted for: wheat 56.9%, maize 24.9%, barley 11.9% and rice 5.1%, all together accounting for 98.8%. In 2016, the trade balance for the main traded cereals was positive: wheat Euro 823.4 million, maize Euro 574.3 million, and barley Euro 121 million. The index of coverage degree of import by export was: 4.9 for maize, 3.4 for wheat, 3.1 for oats, 2.7 for barley, 1.9 for sorghum, 0.4 for rice and 0.3 for rye. The main trade partner for cereal export is the EU with a share of 30.7%, the difference being represented by countries from the extra-EU market, and for import the EU had the top position with 95.8% market share. The hierarchy of the cereals, in the decreasing order of the efficiency of their trade was the following one: wheat, barley, maize, rye, sorghum, oats and rice. But, the main cereals which deserve to be traded on external markets are wheat, maize and barley. This analysis has drawn the conclusion that Romania must commercialize more cereals with a high efficiency in foreign trade in terms of high export value, low import value, high positive trade balance and a high index of coverage degree of import by export. The positive trade balance had a good impact on the payment balance and on the economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent statistical data and market studies have shown that the organic products market is on a continuously upward trend in Europe and globally. For Romania, organic agriculture represents a market niche that is still insufficiently exploited, with a definite and real development potential of the agricultural sector. The role of the consumer is decisive for the evolution trends and future prospects of any market. A questionnaire based quantitative research was done to find out the Romanian consumers' behaviour related to organic products, which allowed the establishment of the weight of organic products consumers within the population interviewed, the extent to which the characteristics of organic products, brands and categories known and consumed are acknowledged. The study also pursued the evaluation of motivational factors which determine the purchase, market appraisal between the alleged favourable attitude towards organic products and product consumption, the evaluation of the way in which the Romanian organic products' quality is perceived in relation with their price. The study shows an increase in consumer interest for "healthy" products, so that the change according to their behaviour shall generate an increase in the organic products market in Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work is a study on indicators that define tourism in Romania. Analysis focused on indicators of the number of tourists and tourist arrivals in accommodation establishments in Romania, in total and in agro-touristic boarding houses on four macro-administrative units and by category of comfort in our country. The methodology used to track the preferences of foreign tourists in accommodation establishments in Romania was to analyse the dynamics of the mentioned indicators, the seasonality of arrivals and forecasting the arrivals of foreign tourists. The data used are from the Statistical Yearbook of Romania, covering the period 2010-2013; some of them are quarterly data. The results have indicated a preference of the arrivals especially in Q3 of each year, in macro-regions M3 and M1, for foreigners and in the macro-regions M1 and M2 for the Romanian tourists. Another results designed the preferences of tourists related to the degree of comfort, which has decreased in time with the increasing levels of comfort; over time, the tourist's number increases on the total from year to year; in particular, in the agro hostels this number is growing slowly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]