*Bankruptcies take a break. Number of insolvencies drop – in Ziarul Financiar
*The car market goes back to plus in September, close to the end of the Clunkers program – in Ziarul Financiar
*Patriciu – Rompetrol's debt has never existed – in Ziarul Financiar
*Texas-based Lufkin make their biggest investments in Ploiesti: “We're going against the tide” – in Ziarul Financiar

Oil and gas company Petrom has externalized its data center to IBM, in a contract worth several million dollars and valid for ten years, the two companies have announced. IBM will provide data center services and run Petrom's data center in Petrom City. “[...] The shared use of the space and the facilities will have a positive impact on our costs,” said Reinhard Pichler, Petrom CFO.

Romanian businessman Dinu Patriciu, who has started to invest in retail earlier this year, plans to reach a total of 3,000 stores under the Mic.ro brand by the end of next year, which will include neighborhood stores as well as mobile kiosks. The investor expects this network to bring a EUR 1.5 billion turnover by the end of next year.

The toxic residues from an accident took place in West Hungary after an explosion at an alumina factory in the area on Monday will reach the major Eastern European rivers, threatening to pollute the Danube, according to Hungarian media.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc underscored the need for an overhaul of the Romanian state institutions, criticising politicians for 'staying captive to populist policies,' during a meeting on Tuesday with representatives of the World Bank.

Romania doubled the volume of exports to China in the first half of this year, sending EUR 154 million worth of goods to the country, according to data from the European Statistics Institute (Eurostat). Meanwhile, the country's imports from China grew too, from EUR 826 million in the first half of last year, to EUR 1.17 billion in the same period of this year.

Texas – based oil equipment producer Lufkin Industries, which has started working on its factory in Ploiesti, expects a EUR 30 million turnover in the first year of activity in Romania. It plans to grow the yearly turnover to around USD 70 million after two or three years of activity.

State-owned metro company Metrorex will choose the consultant for the airport metro line next year in spring. The consultant will decide whether the metro line connecting downtown Bucharest to the Otopeni airport will start from 1 Mai or Piata Victoriei existing metro stations.

The European Commission has sent Romanian authorities a letter asking for further details on how a European directive was transposed into local legislation through Government Emergency Ordinance 50/2010 on consumer lending contracts. The document was sent to the local Department for European Affairs, and, according to government sources, it is the first step in a potential infringement procedure.

The organizers of TEDx Bucharest have opened the applications sessions for the upcoming TEDx Bucharest event on October 15. The event will take place at the Crystal Palace Ballrooms in Bucharest, where 13 speakers from across four countries will create 'a brain spa of ideas', finding a common ground innovation between arts, culture, social entrepreneurship, technology, entertainment and design.

*Bankruptcies take a break. Number of insolvencies drop – in Ziarul Financiar
*The car market goes back to plus in September, close to the end of the Clunkers program – in Ziarul Financiar
*Patriciu – Rompetrol's debt has never existed – in Ziarul Financiar
*Texas-based Lufkin make their biggest investments in Ploiesti: “We're going against the tide” – in Ziarul Financiar

Oil and gas company Petrom has externalized its data center to IBM, in a contract worth several million dollars and valid for ten years, the two companies have announced. IBM will provide data center services and run Petrom's data center in Petrom City. “[...] The shared use of the space and the facilities will have a positive impact on our costs,” said Reinhard Pichler, Petrom CFO.

Romanian businessman Dinu Patriciu, who has started to invest in retail earlier this year, plans to reach a total of 3,000 stores under the Mic.ro brand by the end of next year, which will include neighborhood stores as well as mobile kiosks. The investor expects this network to bring a EUR 1.5 billion turnover by the end of next year.

The toxic residues from an accident took place in West Hungary after an explosion at an alumina factory in the area on Monday will reach the major Eastern European rivers, threatening to pollute the Danube, according to Hungarian media.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc underscored the need for an overhaul of the Romanian state institutions, criticising politicians for 'staying captive to populist policies,' during a meeting on Tuesday with representatives of the World Bank.

Romania doubled the volume of exports to China in the first half of this year, sending EUR 154 million worth of goods to the country, according to data from the European Statistics Institute (Eurostat). Meanwhile, the country's imports from China grew too, from EUR 826 million in the first half of last year, to EUR 1.17 billion in the same period of this year.

Texas – based oil equipment producer Lufkin Industries, which has started working on its factory in Ploiesti, expects a EUR 30 million turnover in the first year of activity in Romania. It plans to grow the yearly turnover to around USD 70 million after two or three years of activity.

State-owned metro company Metrorex will choose the consultant for the airport metro line next year in spring. The consultant will decide whether the metro line connecting downtown Bucharest to the Otopeni airport will start from 1 Mai or Piata Victoriei existing metro stations.

The European Commission has sent Romanian authorities a letter asking for further details on how a European directive was transposed into local legislation through Government Emergency Ordinance 50/2010 on consumer lending contracts. The document was sent to the local Department for European Affairs, and, according to government sources, it is the first step in a potential infringement procedure.

The organizers of TEDx Bucharest have opened the applications sessions for the upcoming TEDx Bucharest event on October 15. The event will take place at the Crystal Palace Ballrooms in Bucharest, where 13 speakers from across four countries will create 'a brain spa of ideas', finding a common ground innovation between arts, culture, social entrepreneurship, technology, entertainment and design.