IMF mission visits Romania

(BUCHAREST) - IMF auditors arrived in Romania on Tuesday to review progress on reforms and prospects for the economy, but their assessment will be published after a general election on December 9.

During their last review, the IMF and the EU called on the Romanian government to move forward with "structural reforms necessary to achieve higher and inclusive growth".

The centre-left government had promised to launch a secondary public offering for a 15-percent stake of national gas operator Transgaz and to privatise Oltchim chemical plant before the IMF board meeting in September.

But the bid to sell Oltchim failed after TV mogul Dan Diaconescu won a tender to buy a 54.8-percent stake but did not produce the 45 million euros ($58 million) he had promised.

In May 2009, in the midst of one of Europe's worst recession, Romania obtained a 20-billion-euro rescue package from the IMF, the European Union and the World Bank in exchange for drastic spending cuts.

In March 2011, the IMF and the EU agreed to provide a fresh credit line of 5.0 billion euros, to be drawn down only in case of emergency.

Romania is expected to book a growth of around 1 percent this year.