Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu estimated on Wednesday that by the end of 2024 inflation would drop below 5% and that Romania would fall within the proposed budget deficit.

„With certainty, until the end of the year, we will have an inflation below 5%. Do I have to remind you what inflation I took over as prime minister, with two digits? We brought it to a reasonable area and it will continue to decrease. If PSD had not entered the government and we had not come with the cap on energy, we would have had an inflation of 30%,” said Ciolacu on Thursday.

Ciolacu specified that in December Romania would fall within the proposed deficit, just like last year.

„In January, we always have this discussion. Last year we fell within the deficit that we announced to you when I took over the mandate of prime minister, although it was 6.8%, we exceeded that moment. Now you ask me what it will happen in December. We will go into deficit. The deficit at this time is not overcome by consumption, but by investment. And you will see that these investments will return to the economy and will be found in taxes and duties. All developed countries have done that,” explained Ciolacu.

Referring to a possible progressive taxation, Ciolacu explained that it does not concern salaries, but exceptional incomes.

„Nobody talked about the progressive taxation of salaries, not even me, as a fan of progressive taxation. On the contrary, I said about a hundred times that we are talking about the progressive taxation of cumulative incomes or exceptional incomes. I also gave an example, if you buy a plot of land for 10,000 euros and you sell it for 10 million euros, nowhere in the world do you pay a tax of 1% or a maximum of 10%. You pay a differentiated tax, because it is an exceptional income,” Ciolacu added.

AGERPRES