Romania has biggest growth potential for clothing retailers

Romania continues to remain attractive for investments in retail, with its fashion sector being seen as having the biggest growth potential among emerging economies, alongside Ukraine's, according to a study by consulting company AT Kearney. After considering criteria such as size of the market, development prospects and the population's willingness to spend, Romania ranks second among the most attractive emerging economies in terms of investments in clothing retail, with 30 states included in the study. Among the factors attracting investors to fashion retail are the fact that half of the population lives in towns and cities, young people's willingness to spend significant amounts of money on international brands, and the doubling of the area occupied by shopping centres over the last few years. However, the National Forecasting Commission (CNP) expects overall textile imports to fall by 25% against last year, with imported clothing expected to see a 5% decline, to 820 million euros, from 863 million euros in 2008.