Prices Keep Rising at the Market: Senior Citizens Among Those Hit Hardest by Cost Increases

Day-to-day expenses — from food to utility bills — are weighing ever more heavily on family budgets across Romania, according to a report conducted directly in local markets. Shoppers say prices are rising at a pace they can no longer keep up with, and that they now carefully calculate before placing each item in their basket.

For many of them, the question at the start of every month has become: what do I cut back on this time?

Producers facing the same difficult situation

On the other side of the market stall, producers describe an equally burdensome reality. They explain that they spend entire months producing their goods, only to find themselves forced to sell at very low prices or throw produce away, because they can no longer find buyers.

The situation reveals a dual pressure in the market: on one hand, buyers no longer have enough money to cover their everyday expenses, whilst on the other, producers are unable to recoup their investment of labour and resources.

Wages and pensions falling short before the month's end

Many Romanians report that their monthly income runs out before the month is over. Money that previously covered routine purchases must now be stretched much more carefully, and people say they have gradually stopped buying products they could once afford without a second thought.

This situation directly affects the budgets of elderly people as well, whose fixed incomes — pensions or savings — are subject to the same pressures from rising food and utility prices.