REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA IN THE ROMANIAN AND EU EXTRA-COMMUNITY AGRI-FOOD TRADE – A COMPARISON

Abstract

For the last 25 years, Republic of Moldova has been among the main agri-food trade partners for Romania. The free trade agreement between Romania and Moldova boosted the trade flows which increased almost continuously since 1995. The agri-food imports from Moldova exceeded Romanian exports, resulting in a continuous trade deficit. Romania’s accession to the EU meant the termination of the free trade agreement, and consequently, imports almost halved in 2007-2010. The soon expected Association  Agreement between Moldova and the EU will facilitate the penetration of the Moldovan products on the Single Market, and most likely boost again the agri-food exchanges. The present paper is analyzing the recent evolutions of the agrifood trade between EU and particularly Romania on one hand, and Republic of Moldova on the other hand, in terms of value, quantity and product composition.