The Evolution of Saudi Arabia's Investments in Romania, in Opposition to the Framework of the Coronavirus Pandemic and the War in Ukraine

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic, together with the war between Ukraine and Russia, triggered a terrible economic and humanitarian crisis, the effects of which are still felt today. Thus, the 2020-2023 period represented a transition, both for humanity and for private entities. Production was affected, trade, workforce, capital flow, as well as foreign investments in various corners of the world. Investments are essential for the economy and for the economic policy. When a state increases its production capacity, this aspect strengthens the economy in the long term, through growth prospects. The shock caused by the coronavirus pandemic has attracted attention even in investments from advanced economies. The aim of this paper is to identify the worth of trade between Romania and Saudi Arabia in the period 2019-2022, besides the most transited goods between the two countries, through a descriptive research, based on the information assuming by the National Institute of Statistics. The descriptive research will continue with the study of Saudi Arabia's investments in Romania, in the period 2019-2023, based on the statistics assuming by the National Registry of the Trade Office, in order to identify the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, on the economic relations between the two different countries. The main results demonstrate that the trade between Romania and Saudi Arabia has evolved in 2022, by 70,7%, compared to 2019, despite the economic instability. The confidence of Saudi investors is growing in the Romanian market, witnessing the number of firms with Saudi capital, which increases annually. The contribution of this paper is an important and innovative one for the economic study, because it focuses on the investments of Saudi Arabia, a country in full accelerated economic diversification, in Romania, a member state of the European Union, during an economic and humanitarian crisis.