The most pessimistic estimate belongs to Matei Paun, Managing Partner of BAC Investments, who expects an economic decline of five percent or more in the first quarter, and said that this will last to the end of this year. “I do not expect a rebound in the coming 18-24 months. The question is if GDP will stagnate next year or continue to decline,” Paun added.
Bogdan Baltazar, financial consultant, forwarded the lowest estimated drop, of 1-1.5 percent in the first quarter and two percent for the whole of 2009. “The business environment is beginning to recover from the panic in Q1. (...) We could see growth towards the end of this year,” Baltazar said.
