In June, Romania's inflation rate decreased to 4.9% compared to the same period last year. The average rate of change in consumer prices from July 2023 to June 2024 was 7.2%, marking the lowest inflation rate since 2021, which has eased some pressure on consumers. In recent periods, Romania's inflation has been amongst the highest in Europe.
Food inflation fell to 1.1% in June, while service prices remained high at 8.8%. Notable year-on-year price increases in food included canned fruits at approximately 10%, wine and beer at around 7-8%, and beef at 6.44%. At the same time, flour prices saw the largest decrease, dropping by about 32%.
Commenting on Romania's most recent inflation data, ING's economic outlook indicates that while upside risks have slightly increased, they maintain a year-end inflation forecast of 4.2%. ING do not expect significant inflation deceleration next year, particularly with an anticipated increase in the tax burden in 2025, alongside factors such as double-digit wage growth and strong lending activity that may limit policy easing by the National Bank of Romania in 2024 and 2025.
In retail, Romanian sales contracted by 0.4% month-on-month in May, following a downward revision of April’s growth to 0.6%. Food sales grew by 1.2% month-on-month in May, compared to 2.7% in April.
Additionally, Romania and Bulgaria recently faced an economic setback after failing to meet the criteria necessary to adopt the euro. The European Central Bank and the European Commission expressed concerns over high inflation and the strength of financial institutions in both countries. Romania had initially aimed to adopt the euro by 2029.
The past year has seen plenty of M&A activity in the Romanian retail market, with Carrefour acquiring the Cora brand, and Ahold Delhaize taking over Profi Rom Food.
Here's an overview of the top ten supermarket retail chains in Romania, according to their most recently-available full-year turnover. All data is supplied by Retail-Index.
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1. Lidl & Kaufland
Turnover: €5.4 billion (2022, estimated)
Schwarz Group owned retailers Kaufland and Lidl take the top spot in Romania, with Kaufland boasting some 155 outlets and Lidl 320 outlets as of last year. Lidl and Kaufland reported a combined estimated turnover of €5.4 billion in 2022.
2. Profi
Turnover: €2.31 billion (2022)
Profi is a Romanian retail chain that operates 1,644 stores across the country. The group was taken over by MidEuropa Partners in 2017.
In October of last year, Dutch retailer Ahold Delhaize announced the acquisition of 100% of Profi Rom Food SRL from MidEuropa Partners.
3. Mega Image
Turnover: €1.63 billion (2022)
Part of the Ahold Delhaize network, Mega Image operates 911 stores across the country, under the banners Mega Image (511 outlets as of 2022) and Shop&Go (400 outlets). The business reported a turnover of €1.63 billion in 2022.
4. Auchan
Turnover: €1.35 billion (2022)
Boasting a presence in Romania since 2005, Auchan operates both hypermarkets and supermarkets in the country. The French retailer has a total of 48 stores in Romania, and reported a turnover of €1.35 billion in 2022.
Last November, Auchan and Romanian oil company OMV Petrom completed the rollout of MyAuchan convenience stores in all Petrom stations across Romania.
5. Metro C&C
Turnover: €1.53 billion (2022)
Wholesale giant Metro Cash & Carry operates two banners in Romania: La Doi Pasi and Metro. The company has a total of 30 outlets in the country, and reported an estimated turnover of €1.53 billion in 2022.
6. REWE
Turnover: €1.13 billion (2022)
German retailer REWE operates several store formats in Romania, including Billa, Penny, Penny XXL, and XXL Mega Discount. The company has a total of 311 stores in Romania as of 2023, and reported a turnover of €1.13 billion in 2022.
7. Carrefour
Turnover: €944 million (2022)
French multinational retailer Carrefour operates several store formats in Romania, under the banners Carrefour Contact, Carrefour Express and Carrefour Market. Carrefour has a total of 419 outlets in the country, and reported turnover of €944 million in 2022.
Earlier this year, Carrefour Romania announced a new initiative to combat inflation for shoppers.
8. Selgros
Turnover: €781 million (2022)
Cash-and-carry operator Selgros boasts 23 stores in Romania, and reported a turnover of €781 million in 2022. It has had a presence in the country since 2001.
9. Cora
Turnover: €310 million (2022)
Cora is a French retail company that operates 13 hypermarkets in Romania as of 2023. The group, which has had a presence in the country since 2007, reported a turnover of €310 million in 2022.
Last November, retail giant Carrefour announced the completion of its acquisition of all activities of the Cora brand in Romania.
10. CBA
Turnover: N/A
Boasting a presence in Romania since 2002, CBA operates some 115 outlets in Romania as of 2022, in both medium-sized and small store formats.
About Retail-Index
Retail-Index is a specialist supplier of management information on consumer retail markets, provided by Veraart Research Group in the Netherlands. Its mission is to supply managers with up-to-date key information on retail markets in Europe and support them in their international expansion.
The company dates back to 1964, when it started as a market research and marketing consulting company for consumer products and services. In 1989, it started publishing written reports on various retail sectors in Europe. As of 2005, it publishes its information on retailers through the online database and curated datasheet exports available on www.retail-index.com. A team of researchers manages the data to reflect upon current developments in the markets, collected from an extensive number of sources.
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