Romania promotes stock market consolidation in view of EU entry
BUCHAREST (Reuters) – The Bucharest stock exchange and the RASDAQ over-the-counter market will merge this year as part of the Balkan country’s capital market consolidation ahead of its EU accession, an official told Reuters yesterday. Bourse General Manager Stere Farmache told Reuters that shareholders of the two institutions agreed late on Wednesday to the long-considered merger, which was facilitated by new capital market laws, passed to meet EU requirements last month. «The merger will allow us to brace for the European competition,» Farmache said. The bourse lists 63 stocks, with only a few considered appealing to foreign investors – oil firms SNP Petrom and Rompetrol and three commercial banks. Slowing inflation and robust growth has revived interest in Romanian equities but market liquidity remains low.
