Drug producer Terapia Ranbaxy grew its sales by 21 percent in the first half of the year in Romania, to USD 48 million, according to the company's most recent financial report. The company was helped by the restructuring process and by rationalization, which counterbalanced the negative market conditions, according to the company.

Banks are increasing loan prices instead of making them cheaper – in Ziarul Financiar, Govt prepares new changes to Labor Code – in Ziarul Financiar, Family Frost fails in Romania – EUR 10 mln lost on stores on wheels – in Ziarul Financiar, RBS reduces local exposure to EUR 292 million – in Ziarul Financiar

Terapia Ranbaxy sales increase by 21 percent in first half of the year – in Ziarul Financiar

Polish film 'Zero', directed by Pawel Borowski, has won the Anonimul Independent Film festival trophy, during a premiere evening which took place on August 14 in Sfantu Gheorghe, the Danube Delta. Zero is the story of 24 hours in the lives of a couple of characters who life stories intersect.

International Chamber Music Festival SoNoRo will take place between October 31st and November 14 in Bucharest, Iasi and Cluj – Napoca, with this year's edition organized under the 'Masked Ball' motif. The festival will gather over 30 international artists, who will perform in 14 concerts.

Calendar of events, August 16-19, Bucharest, Romania

Romanian president Traian Basescu has commented several recent articles in the French and UK media which wrote about Republic of Moldova workers in EU states. He has criticized articles in 'Le Figaro' and in two UK tabloids about the illegal workers coming from the Republic of Moldova.

Mercadia Holland, a company controlled by Romanian businessman Dinu Patriciu, has taken over discount retailer MiniMAX DISCOUNT, in a deal whose value was not revealed. The 31-unit network used to be controlled by Austrian Real4You and two individuals, Rainer Exel and Andreas Kampf.

A recent article by French daily newspaper Le Monde points out to the increasing activity on wind farming in South- Eastern Romania, in Dobrogea area, where several wind energy projects have taken off recently.

Romanian-made movie 'Morgen', by Marian Crisan, has received four trophies in the Locarno Film Festival. A Romania-France-Hungary co-production, the film got the special jury award, the award from the ecumenic jury, an award from the youth jury and the Don Quijote award from the International Cineclub Foundation.

Orthodox and catholic churches celebrate St. Mary today (in Romania, it is called Sfanta Maria). This is the name day of around 2 million Romanians, according to statistics. Besides Maria, other derivatives for the name are Marin, Marian, Marina, Marilena.

314 foreigners will be sworn in to receive Romanian citizenship on Monday, according to the National Citizenship Authority. The oath is the last step in the citizenship process, following which the Romanian citizenship certificate will be issued. The majority of those who will receive their citizenship come from the Republic of Moldova.

The independent theater festival Undercloud will start this Sunday, August 16, on the La Motoare terrace, above the Bucharest National Theater. The festival, which will end on August 31, aims at promoting an independent theater movement and provide a summer theater season for those who love alternative culture.