Romania is the most pessimistic country in Eastern Europe when it comes to consumer confidence and financial expectations, with the two indicators dropping from 120 points to less than 40 in the past two years, a survey from the International Monetary Fund showed.  In its latest regional outlook report on Europe, the Washington-based institution noted the Romanians are also most gloomy regarding unemployment projections for the next 12 months.

The IMF said some of the emerging Europe countries have been hit harder by the recession, because they've experience not just a decline in exports, but also a collapse of domestic demand, as the credit-fueled domestic demand boom of the pre-crisis years came to a sudden end.

"Such countries include Latvia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Lithuania, and Romania. In contrast, countries that had the mildest downturn are now seeing the strongest recovery," the report noted.

Romania will continue to experience weak consumption, restraint by poor labor market conditions, low confidence, and the destruction of consumer wealth, the IMF said.

Mediafax