News about International trade
The first week of March on the grain market of Moldova also brought increase of prices for wheat (plus 0,15-0,20 lei/kg) and corn (plus 0,10 lei/kg on average). The strengthening of prices corresponds to the dynamics of exchange prices for goods of this group in Europe, as well as in the European ports of the Black Sea countries. However, according to market operators, at the moment, the biggest influence on prices is the rise in the price of diesel fuel, i.e. transportation logistics, and a significant strengthening of the dollar against the euro and Moldovan leu.
Two batches of chicken meat, one from Ukraine and the other from Poland, imported to Latvia were found to be contaminated with salmonella.
The escalating conflict in Iran has already caused fuel and energy prices to rise and stock markets to plummet.
Tehran is experiencing a “temporary shortage” of fuel amid U.S.-Israeli airstrikes, according to the governor of Iran’s capital province. Residents have been urged to refrain from unnecessary travel and save fuel.
Ukrainian Oschadbank has demanded that the Hungarian authorities return the collection vehicles and valuables that were illegally seized. The institution notes that further defense of the rights of Oschadbank of Ukraine in resolving the incident in Hungary will be focused in two directions. The Bank intends to appeal against the decision on restrictive measures regarding the stay in the EU, which were unreasonably imposed on the employees of the collection team by the migration service of Hungary. It will also take legal steps to recover the bank’s property.
The current working week ended with “green”, i.e. – growing indicators of futures for the whole grain group of commodities, rapeseed and sugar. Exchange analysts see this as a direct impact of the lack of positive news about the imminent prospects for the winding down of hostilities and the elimination of logistical failures in the Middle East. However, the factor of not very good weather is gradually coming into play.
At this year’s Munich Security Conference, transatlanticism was finally buried, but it remains unclear whether Europeans realized this.
Hungary intends to bring the Moldovan-Hungarian cooperation in the defense sector to a new level. This was stated by Hungarian Defense Minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovnicki after a meeting with Moldovan Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatii, who paid a visit to Budapest.
More than 91% of all produce samples analyzed last year were in compliance. This is evidenced by the report of the National Food Safety Agency ANSA on monitoring of pesticide residues in food of plant origin.
Countries in the Gulf region will lose between $34 billion and $56 billion in tourism revenue in 2026, with the number of international arrivals to the region dropping to 11-27% year-on-year, according to Logos Press.
Oil quotations continue to grow amid the conflict in the Middle East. Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad Sherida al-Qaabi warned that the price of oil could rise to $150 per barrel.
During his first official visit to Azerbaijan, Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Mihail Popşoi signed with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Ceyhun Bayramov a plan of interdepartmental consultations for 2026-2027.
In February 2026, food prices rose on the world market. The FAO Food Price Index (FPI) averaged 125.3 points last month, up 1.1 points (0.9%) from January.
Wheat production in Kazakhstan in the 2025/26 marketing year will reach a record 18 million tons. This is only slightly below the previous season’s harvest, the second largest ever recorded.
The Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) to temporarily relax customs tariff regulation measures in respect of certain products imported into the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union.
For the first time since November 2025, Ukraine started supplying electricity abroad. Specifically, on March 5, a minimum export to Moldova was recorded. Before that, the last time electricity was exported was on November 11, 2025.
Romanian President Nicusor Dan reported on social media a productive meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, during which they discussed Romania’s and Poland’s shared responsibility to strengthen the security of the eastern flank and the entire continent.
In international relations, clearly illegitimate government actions can sometimes be morally justified. Although there are few historical examples of legitimacy trumping legality, they do exist. Whether the joint U.S.-Israeli war against Iran is one such case requires more attention than it has received so far.
The laboratory analysis of the first sunflower batch, which arrived in Bulgaria from Argentina, showed that the maximum permissible residue levels of two pesticides in the products were exceeded.
Romania is taking a decisive step towards becoming a logistics leader in Southeast Europe.
