... 60% of Romania's imports come from EU countries (National Bank of Romania, 2003). Yet Romania's inclusion in the EU is much more than a simple macroeconomic balance of payments issue. The economies of Spain, Portugal, and Greece, for example, were revived upon their inclusion in the EU. Romania's acceptance into the EU is expected to yield similar economic success. Two of the most important requirements for membership into the EU are the following: * A fully-functioning free-market economy * The ability to compete in a single European market (EIU, 2003). In 1989, however, these requirements proved challenging for the country, as its economy severely lagged that of its European partners as well as those of other former communist countries. But by 1999, significant progress had been achieved internally, as the country's S&P rating was upgraded to a status rating of "positive outlook" (Price Waterhouse Coopers, 2001). The economic fortunes of Romania ...

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