Daniel Anghel, PwC: “Romania needs an economic policy that takes strategic industries into account in order to create a national plan”

“Globally, the transformation of the automotive industry in recent years is certainly closely linked to government policies.
Amid tariffs in the United States, which impact supply chains, we are also seeing an acceleration in the race within the automotive industry, and the latest electrification trends reflect the growing subsidies being granted to the sector.
Romania is undergoing a maturity test. The economic cycle that began in 2015 has, in my view, come to an end. Romania has grown through a wage-led growth concept. We now need to see how we can reset this program, which, in my opinion, has reached its conclusion,” said Daniel Anghel, Country Managing Partner, PwC Romania, at the Automotive Forum 2025, organized by Automotive Today and The Diplomat-Bucharest.

Key statements:

• We should initiate a coherent program with an economic policy that takes into account Romania’s strategic industries in order to create a national plan.
• At the Foreign Investors Council (FIC), we conduct a perception survey every six months regarding investors’ confidence in the Romanian economy. The results from October highlight the urgent need for Romania to improve legislative predictability, reduce fiscal pressures, and eliminate the turnover tax and the so-called “pillar tax” in order to regain investor confidence.
• From an investment perspective, only 25% of FIC member companies (out of a total of 110) believe they will continue to increase capital investments over the next 12 months — a decrease of 12% compared to the spring edition of this year and the lowest level recorded in the past decade.
• 49% of companies plan to maintain their current investment levels, while 26% intend to reduce them, and 83% are considering cost-cutting measures because Romania is perceived as uncompetitive for several reasons: bureaucracy (78%), tax burden (78%), lack of transparency and consistency in policy implementation (73%), taxes (58%), and infrastructure (53%). The only somewhat positive indicator is the availability of adequate labor, which remains the only area where Romania is seen as competitive (64%).
• Globally, electric vehicle sales grew by 36% year-on-year after the first three quarters of this year. Market share reached 19%, with China leading at 31%, followed by Europe with 18%.
• There are turning points in the automotive industry, such as the recent semiconductor crisis triggered by Nexperia. It is a maturity test for the entire industry.
• Looking at the automotive industry in Central and Eastern Europe, the growth trend continues, up 3% in the first three quarters of the year, mainly driven by Poland (up 6%) and followed by Czechia (up 5%).
• In Romania, electric vehicles reached a 6% market share in September, and electrified vehicles account for almost half of new registrations. Across the entire car market, growth reached 36% in the first nine months of the year.