Three-quarters of respondents believe that in conditions of rising prices, people will be tempted to buy products on the black market at lower prices. Most Romanians believe that purchasing power has declined in 2022 and are pessimistic about the development of living standards in 2023. More than half of the research participants believe that they will live worse this year.

The Romanian Institute for Evaluation and Strategy – IRES conducted, on behalf of the Viitorul Anti-Trafficking Association (ACTIV), a large-scale sociological study at the national level regarding the phenomenon of smuggling and counterfeiting in Romania.

Three out of ten respondents openly admit that they will be tempted to buy products on the black market. They are mainly men, young people, with a lower level of education. The main goods that the interviewees say they will buy on the black market are food (57% of people), clothes and shoes (31%); other products, less frequently mentioned are cosmetics and hygiene products (12%), electronics (11%), cigarettes (10%).

“Rising prices were the main concern of Romanians during 2022, and all our data shows that it remains at the same level this year, at least for now. Rising prices have eroded purchasing power, with almost a third of respondents now saying they would be tempted to buy products on the black market at a lower price. But this number in itself is worrying, especially since food is the number one category of goods that respondents indicate for such purchases. We believe that in this context it is important that the authorities, representatives of producers, distributors and traders join their efforts to inform people about all the risks they are exposed to when buying products on the black market”, explained Antonio Amuza , sociologist, IRES.

Romanians indicated the woodworking industry (85%), tobacco industry (81%), alcohol industry (76%), clothing and footwear (75%), food industry (58%), pharmaceutical industry (47%), automobile industry (47% ) and the cosmetics industry (43%) as the economic sectors in which the greatest problems related to the illegal circulation of goods are expected in 2023.

The government is considered primarily responsible for problems related to smuggling, counterfeiting or illicit traffic in the tobacco, logging, food and automotive industries. Manufacturers, on the other hand, are held responsible for these problems in the case of the cosmetics industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and the marketing of clothing/shoes. For problems related to smuggling, counterfeiting or illegal circulation in the field of courier services and the alcohol industry, consumers are perceived as the main responsibility.

See the full study here

“6 years after the launch of ACTIV, we wanted to repeat this study to see how the phenomenon of illicit traffic in goods has evolved and how it is perceived by Romanians in the current socio-economic context. They believe that this problem can only be solved by reducing corruption, cooperation between the Romanian state, the affected industries and civil society, aspects that we have identified and for which we have also carried out campaigns and actions carried out in these years. Only through close cooperation between civil society, affected industries and the competent authorities, under the conditions of an effective legal framework ensured by properly equipped public institutions, we can cope with this growing phenomenon, a fact demonstrated by the important captures of recent years”, – declares Daniel Merakinianou, president of the ACTIV Association.

China, Turkey, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova are identified as the main sources of counterfeit or smuggled products. Almost half of Romanians perceive the war in Ukraine as a factor in the increase in the illegal circulation of goods.

Romania’s failure to join the Schengen area can be interpreted as the consequences of the political and economic interests of some EU countries (43%), corruption (23%), as well as the inability of the Romanian state authorities (president, government and parliament) to manage this strategic goal. Illegal migration with 9% of responses and illegal trade in goods with 2% are considered by Romanians as topics that did not actually influence the decisions of the JAI Council.

Paradoxically, when asked what solutions the Romanian authorities have to increase our country’s chances of joining the Schengen zone, the respondents indicated: a more effective fight against the illegal circulation of goods, non-alienation of the country’s resources, intensifying diplomatic efforts, strengthening control over foreign companies in Romania, ensuring better protection of the border against illegal immigrants and, only as a last resort, blocking the veto on the decisions of the European Union.

For the population, more responsible behavior outside the country, cooperation with the state in the fight against illegal migration, refusal to buy goods from illegal circulation, as well as a boycott of some foreign companies would be the main support options for entering the Schengen zone.