InfoMarket Economic News Agency morning review based on the previous business day: key news, important economic indicators and upcoming events. Available by subscription: plus@infomarket.md // +373 79 119 100 // Every day at 7 a.m. - in your inbox.
Macroeconomics
• Moldova's total public debt at the end of August reached a new record high of 147.73 billion lei, increasing by 4.84 billion lei (+3.4%) over the month and by 11.3% since the beginning of the year. Its ratio to GDP is estimated at 38.1%.
• Moldova's external public debt at the end of August stood at $5.18 billion - $323.7 million more than a month earlier and 7.7% above the level at the beginning of the year. Multilateral creditors account for 90% of external debt, with the IMF the largest creditor at 25.4%.
Energy and Resources
• ANRE says higher natural gas prices could lead to higher electricity rates for end users: Termoelectrica is requesting an increase in the price of the electricity it generates from 2.31 to 5.21 lei/kWh, while CET-Nord is requesting an increase from 2.77 to 6.99 lei/kWh. Thermal power plants account for 15–20% of total electricity procurement, so the impact of gas prices on the final tariff will not be proportional.
• Parliament approved in the first reading the simplification of permitting procedures for renewable energy: the maximum authorization period will be 24 months for large power plants, 12 months for installations of up to 150 kW, up to 12 months in accelerated development zones, and up to 3 months for self-consumption installations.
Foreign Economy and Trade
• 84.5% of Moldova's exports to the EU are transported by truck: in the first half of the year, goods worth 895 million euros were delivered to the EU by this means. Moldova's total exports to the European Union amounted to 1.06 billion euros, or 64.2% of the country's total exports.
Government Regulation
• Parliament gave final approval to a phased increase in the limit for foreign exchange transactions without NBM authorization from 10,000 to 100,000 euros, and from January 1, 2028, to 250,000 euros. For certain foreign loans and credits, the requirement for notification and registration with the NBM is scheduled to be abolished from October 1, 2027.
• The State Tax Service plans to complete the digitization of all tax services by the end of 2026: 17 of its 19 services are already available digitally, while digitization of the remaining two is in its final stages.
International Relations
• Moldova has already received more than 500 million euros under the Reform and Growth Facility, which has a total funding allocation of 1.9 billion euros; a new tranche is expected in early October following the European Commission's assessment of reforms whose implementation deadline was in June. To date, 28 reform commitments have been fulfilled.
• The Switzerland-Moldova Cooperation Program for 2025–2028 exceeds 100 million Swiss francs (106.2 million euros), with 35% of the budget allocated to economic development and sustainability.
Investment and Projects
• Parliament ratified a new agreement with Romania on transportation infrastructure of strategic importance: Romania will finance the bridge across the Prut and related infrastructure, with investment estimated at 56 million euros, while Moldova will finance a 0.5 km highway section to the R16 road, estimated at about 5 million euros. Completion is scheduled by the end of 2030.
• District heating modernization projects in Chisinau and Balti received a special legal regime in the first reading to accelerate the work. The program covers 1,700 apartment buildings in Chisinau and 296 in Balti; previously announced investments total 326 million euros and 17 million euros, respectively.
Banks and Finance
• Parliament approved in the first reading measures to strengthen the independence of the National Bank of Moldova in line with EU standards, including a ban on direct financing of the public sector by the central bank and restrictions on the public sector's privileged access to financial institutions.
• In the 11 months following the technical connection to SEPA, 1.1 million transfers were processed through the system, accounting for more than 80% of all cross-border transactions in euros; the number of users of the MIA instant payment system surpassed 1 million.
Day in Figures
147.73 billion lei - Moldova's total public debt at the end of August. | $5.18 billion - external public debt as of August 31. |
38.1% of GDP - estimated ratio of total public debt. | 500+ million euros - already received under the EU Reform and Growth Facility. |
1.9 billion euros - total allocation of the Reform and Growth Facility for Moldova. | 895 million euros - exports to the EU by truck in H1 2026. |
326 million euros - announced investment in modernizing Chisinau district heating. | 56 million euros - estimated Romanian investment in the bridge and related infrastructure. |
AGENDA
• On September 25 at 10:00, ANRE will hold a public meeting to consider, among other matters, regulated prices for natural gas supplied by Energocom and electricity supplied by Premier Energy under last-resort supplier obligations.
• On September 25, the National Bureau of Statistics will publish final agricultural indicators for 2025.
• On September 25, the National Bank of Moldova will publish statistics on official reserve assets and other foreign-currency liquidity, as well as reporting on non-bank lending supervision.
• September 25 is the deadline for declaring and paying mandatory state social insurance contributions for August.
• On September 25 from 09:00, farmers in Basarabeasca District plan a warning protest using agricultural equipment on the Cimislia-Basarabeasca highway near the village of Abaclia.
• On September 25, Terra Moldova Expo 2026 opens at Chisinau Arena and DeepTech GigaHack 2026 starts at Tekwill; the agenda covers agriculture, the food industry, technology, investment, EU markets, FinTech, HealthTech and cybersecurity.