The reasons for triggering inflation in Romania are in the monetary policy, structural, but most of them are psychological, said Adrian Vasilescu, adviser to the National Bank Governor, in an interview with Jurnalul National.

The reasons for triggering inflation in Romania are in the monetary policy, structural, but most of them are psychological, said Adrian Vasilescu, adviser to the National Bank Governor, in an interview with Jurnalul National. He added that the 15% price hike forecast by retailers to take place in February has no economic grounds in the national currency devaluation. In spite of all the alarming calls, Romania's central bank keeps its inflation target for this year at 3.8%, plus-minus 1%. The national currency was traded Friday at almost the same levels as the day before, that is 3.7694 for the euro. A new maximum value of 3.83 lei for one euro was reached in the inter-banking trade, after foreign funds placed aggressive buy orders, dealers said. “Midday Friday there was a sudden surge in the number of buy orders placed by foreign funds, which determined a 0.05 lei hike of the exchange rate, in less than an hour,” a dealer said. “Only a central bank intervention on the market could stop the decline of the leu,” he added. Vasilescu said that the central bank continued to place its bets on the national currency. “But that does not mean that we advise people how to trade; after all, Romanians do not live out of exchange rate speculation,” he said. Vasilescu pointed out that “revenues in Romania grow faster than the inflation, which goes to say that the leu starts to stand for something, doesn't it.” The National Association of Exporters and Importers recently asked the central bank to keep the exchange rate to the euro at between 3.6 and 3.8. “But the association well knows that the national bank is no tally to ke