Romania’s assets staged a relief rally after a centrist candidate defeated his nationalist opponent in the presidential election, with investor focus now shifting to how quickly a new government can fix the state’s finances.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Nicușor Dan on his victory in the Romanian presidential election and invited him to come to Ukraine. Zelenskyy

There was a wave of euphoria and relief across Europe following the election of pro-European liberal Nicusor Dan as Romania’s new president. Moldovan President Maia Sandu echoed the sentiment: “Congratulations,

But Romania's growth has steadily slowed since a post-pandemic bounce in 2021, and the European Commission forecasts its budget deficit at 8.6% this year and 8.4% in 2026, well above the government's 7% 2025 target outlined in a seven-year EU-approved plan.

As of midnight on May 18th Romania’s election authorities reported he had taken 54% of the vote to Mr Simion’s 46%. The turnout was a record for a Romanian presidential election. The country’s enormous diaspora,

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But Nicușor Dan, the independent mayor of Bucharest who scraped past his opponents to qualify for the run-off with 21 per cent, has caught up in opinion polls and is counting on the huge turnout to tip the scales in his favour.