The Current Account and the External Trade Balance Sheet of Romania. Evolution and Features after 1990

Comportamentally, the external trade balance is determined by the state of the national economy, external factors and by the evolution of the currencies in which the trade is done. The evolution of the external trade balance is the mirror of the external imbalance recorded by Romania in the period between 1990-2009. That’s why, an analysis in which is needed to discover the sources that cause the trade deficit, is not only opportune, but also imperative, because the existence of the trade deficit determines the amassment of external debt, which subdues Romania to numerous efforts in order to pay back the debt and the interest. The present paper analysis the evolution of the Romanian external trade balance with its elements, from 1990 till the end of 2009, in order to find out its essential characteristics and what are the sources for the trade deficit of this country, by emphasizing on the continuity and discontinuity factors from the evolution of the external trade balance, and also the resources for financing the deficit. The paper points out the characteristics of the external trade balance evolution, and the measure by which the currency evolution had an influence. The analysis offers these conclusions: Romania needs urgent measures to attract foreign direct investments to balance the external trade deficit, and needs to assess thoroughly the means by which it finance its deficit; the authorities should focus with the utmost responsibility the idea of a sustainable external trade balance, and to adopt the necessary decisions, because the continuous deficit will put in peril the durability of any economic growth and the deflation process.