The Trump administration has imposed 100% tariffs on a range of imports from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, accusing both countries of deepening ties with China. This marks the first time a U.S. president has taken such a step against a European nation over relations with Beijing.

Over the past decade, Romania has faced increasing pressure - both from domestic and from international institutions - to modernize its property tax system. With structural challenges in housing affordability and significant fiscal constraints at the national level, local tax reform, as outlined in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), has emerged as a critical priority, writes Daniel Grigore, Director, Corporate Income Tax, Deloitte Romania.

Despite major divestments, the CPI Property Group has not managed to reduce its debt to the extent that rating agencies would return it to the investment grade, making its debts enormously more expensive. Due to increasing financial pressure, the owner is willing to consider buyout offers, according to six independent sources, reports e15.cz.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has cut its 2025 growth forecast for its regions by 0.2 percentage points to 3.0%, with a moderate rebound to 3.4% expected in 2026. This follows a similar downgrade in February and reflects mounting global headwinds, including rising trade policy uncertainty, softening external demand, and newly imposed tariffs.

Romania's banking sector has a relatively low exposure to the commercial real estate (CRE) market, indicating stability and significant growth potential, according to an analysis by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

Donald Trump has secured the necessary electoral votes to secure a second term, raising questions about how his presidency will influence real estate markets in Europe and CEE.

CEE economies would suffer under a potential Trump presidency, primarily due to anticipated new trade tariffs, according to new research by Erste Group. The trade conflicts would impact the region indirectly through its economic reliance on Germany, says the bank’s CEE research team.

SEE Property Forum 2024, Romania’s leading international real estate event, brought together top economic minds to debate the effects of the economic convergence process in the region and also the current and future economic outlook of CEE.

Hungary's construction sector showed a spectacular rebound in April, with output volumes up 11% on the previous month, completely making up for the feeble performance of the previous two months. The production figures in recent months for a sector in fundamentally poor shape are far from tragic, nor are the order books figures, but we are seeing such huge month-to-month fluctuations that it is very difficult to assess what is happening in the construction sector.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has reduced its main interest rate from 4% to 3.75%, following Canada's rate cut earlier in the week. ECB President Christine Lagarde announced that the outlook for inflation had significantly improved, which enabled the rate cut. However, she warned that inflation would likely stay above the 2% target, averaging 2.5% in 2024 and 2.2% in 2025. The ECB remains committed to keeping its policy restrictive to achieve the inflation target. This rate cut, though anticipated, is seen as a relief for consumers and businesses, aiming to stimulate economic activity by making borrowing cheaper.