INTERVIEW. From “Bucuria” candies to wines: which Moldovan products are successful in Romania / 3 goods from the neighboring country that cannot yet be sold in the EU

Romania is the main market for Moldovan products, with a third of the total trade volume of the Republic of Moldova. In an interview given to the HotNews audience, the president of the Chisinau Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Sergiu Harea, spoke about the Moldovan products that are the most successful in Romania, but also about the goods that are still waiting for the approval of the European Union to enter the European market.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova, in the first eight months of 2025, the exports of goods of the Republic of Moldova amounted to 2.28 billion dollars, with a decrease of 2.5% compared to the similar period in 2024.

Romania remained in first place in the list of Moldovan export destinations, with a percentage of 29.6% of the total. The value of deliveries to Romania in January–August 2025 was 674.7 million dollars, 9.8% less compared to the first eight months of 2024.

The main goods exported to Romania are agri-food products, especially cereals and alcoholic beverages such as wine, live animals, chemicals, including cosmetics and maintenance products; textiles and clothing; plastics and rubber; electrical equipment and electronic parts.

“There is no commercial network in Romania where you cannot find alcoholic beverages from the Republic of Moldova”

– Mr. Harea, if we were to make a list of the most popular Moldovan products that are sold in Romania, what would they be?
– Sergiu Harea: During 2025, the most exported products in Romania were electric wires and cables, sunflower seeds, wheat and corn, fresh grape wines, glassware, vegetable oil, processed food products, but also fruits and vegetables. These are the most exported Moldovan products on the Romanian market. Conversely, from Romania we import oils from petroleum and natural gas, electricity, medicines, cars and spare parts, construction materials and chemical products.

– If we were to talk about the products that people, Romanian citizens, find in stores, what would they be?
– In Romania, the most common Moldovan products are, in particular, agricultural products and alcoholic beverages. There is no commercial network in Romania where you cannot find alcoholic beverages from the Republic of Moldova. There are also processed products such as dried fruit, and of course fresh fruit: honey, plums, cherries and others.

– The data show that the volume of exports in Romania decreased in the last year. Why did this happen?
– If we compare with the last years, the trend is to increase the volume of Moldovan exports to Romania. During the last three years we have had a restoration of exports, with small exceptions in the case of products such as wheat, corn or sunflowers, last year being a dry one, which led to a decrease.

Otherwise, in all positions we have either a stabilization or a slight increase. On the side of imports from Romania, they have increased, because now we import natural gas, electricity, oils for cars. If previously these products came from Russia, Belarus or Ukraine, now they come from Romania.

– Do you have an example of a new product that has recently started to be exported to Romania?
– Yes, we have new exports in the field of pastry: the company Franzeluţaa domestic enterprise, began to export more bread and bakery products. We also see good growth in the cosmetics sector, “Viorica Cosmetics”, a member company of the Chamber of Commerce with notable results. But I don't want to go into more details.

– How do our products face the competition with the Romanian ones, on the market there?
– Moldovan products meet European requirements and are competitive on the Romanian market. Not by chance, 67% of Moldova's exports go to the European Union, and 24% of them go to Romania. Romania is the main commercial partner of the Republic of Moldova, with a share of 29.6% of total trade.

– Regarding the requirements to access the Romanian market: are there certain facilities for Moldovan products compared to other countries in the European Union? Need to adapt, for example, the packaging, the quality?
– Romania, being a member of the European Union, grants the same facilities as other member countries, as the Republic of Moldova has signed a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union. Thus, Moldovan products benefit from zero customs duties on export. For some products, such as apples, plums, cherries or sugar, there are tariff quotas, limit quantities, but the European Union has given us sufficiently large quotas, which we can fully cover in 2025 and in the following years.

“There are customs duties and non-tariff barriers in the case of the export of three products”

– Are there currently barriers to exporting in Romania, which you are working on now?
– We cannot talk about actual barriers, but there are customs duties and non-tariff barriers in the case of exporting beef, pork and dairy products. European Union permission must be obtained for these categories. We are actively working with ANSA, the responsible institution in the Republic of Moldova, to obtain this permit from the General Directorate for Health of the European Commission.

– Do our products manage to attract visitors to the Republic of Moldova? I mean brands that have become iconic and attract tourists.
– Of course. Look at the brand Cricovahow many foreign visitors the winery has (no- the number of visitors exceeded half a million in 2024). Or our other wineries. Also the factory joya member of the Chamber of Commerce, attracts many foreign tourists. We have products that are recognized both at home and abroad.