News about International trade
Moldova’s debt to the CIS amounts to 1.6 million lei. Foreign Minister Mihail Popşoi made it clear that Moldova is ready to repay it.
In Bulgaria, exceeding of permissible pesticide norms was detected in a consignment of Argentine sunflower delivered by the third ship. According to laboratory tests, the level of deltamethrin in the samples is twice as high as the established norms. The samples were taken by inspectors of the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA) in the presence of local agricultural producers.
Russian oil company Lukoil has completely devalued its investments in foreign assets amid US sanctions.
In February 2026, the Moldovan grain market saw an increase in wheat export supplies. Last month, compared to the previous month, the volume of external wheat supplies almost doubled – from 40.4 thousand tons to 72.2 thousand tons. Apparently, farmers sold off their stocks to replenish working capital on the eve of the spring field work campaign.
The chaotic crisis in the Strait of Hormuz has made clear how power works in the twenty-first century. It reminds us that the greatest long-term threat to the United States is not China’s military buildup or Russian aggression, but the gradual fragmentation of the system of alliances that has provided its global leadership since World War II.
UPDATED. The Parliament adopted in the first reading two draft laws on the regulation of short supply chains of agri-food products, one from PAS and one from Democrația Acasă. The opposition faction used a special “argument” for clarity: the deputies were given bulbs.
Kazakh grain supplies resumed after a two-week break since the beginning of the war in the Middle East. This week Ak Bidai Terminal in Aktau started transshipment of grain to Iran.
In the period from July 2025 to February 2026 inclusive, the Republic of Moldova exported 66.8 thousand tons of sunflower oil, which is almost six times higher than the extremely low volume of the previous season (only 11.65 thousand tons). In the current season, the processing of products inside the country resumed.
After three-hour talks with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, U.S. Special Envoy John Cole said that President Donald Trump calls Lukashenko his friend and a respected world leader.
Due to the crisis in the Middle East, global gas prices have increased. However, Moldova has not suffered yet – the country does not import gas from this region. Moreover, purchases are made under contracts indexed one month in advance. The director general of the National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE), Aleksey Taran, assured that the regulated gas price will remain unchanged for the time being.
In January-February 2026, Moldova sent more than 17 thousand tons of grapes to foreign markets. Its exports continue in March, but the purchase prices of winegrowers are discouraging.
In the first two months of 2026 compared to the same period last year, Ukraine increased exports of rapeseed oil in value terms by 34 times – from $3 million to $102 million.
The war in Iran is shaking the world economy more and more thoroughly. Global financial markets are showing signs of growing panic amid escalating conflict in the Middle East and a sharp jump in energy prices, analysts say.
Swiss watch exports showed strong growth in February 2026, reinforcing the signal of recovering demand for luxury goods. According to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, shipments abroad increased by 9.2% year-on-year to CHF 2.168 billion, compared to a 3.6% decline a month earlier.
At the opening of the session, oil was trading around $110 per barrel. As of 5:55 Moscow time, the cost of May futures for Brent increased by 4.5% to $112.26 per barrel. In general, oil rose in price by about 11% during the week, and for the month the growth exceeded 50%.
Moldova may abolish import customs duties on more than 90% of goods from the USA, keeping them on some sensitive groups (meat, milk and products from them, as well as sugar, sucrose, fructose, etc.). A corresponding parliamentary initiative has been registered in Parliament.
On Wednesday, March 18, global oil prices showed a decline after the news of resumption of oil exports from Iraq’s Kirkuk fields to the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
The European e-cigarette market is now at the peak of growth, but almost half of the turnover is out of state control. This is the conclusion reached by the authors of a new international study on the structure of the illegal vape market in Europe, presented at a press conference by experts from Fraunhofer IIS and MRU GmbH (Germany).
The norm of the minimum stock of gasoline in Moldova is reduced from 8,000 tons to 5,000 tons. At the same time, the retail sale of diesel in consumer containers is limited to 20 liters per purchase. These measures are taken by the government in order to optimize the use of storage capacity and avoid blocking stocks.
Asian countries are seen as major buyers of Russian oil as exports are being redirected and supplies cut through familiar routes. CNBC reports that countries are lining up for resources from Russia.
