Number of Seized Counterfeit Goods in Romania Triples in 2009 Compared to 2008

The Romanian Customs have reported that the number and the value of seized counterfeit goods greatly increased in 2009 compared to 2008 – 70,076,524 items worth EUR 91,230,000 (USD 125,743,216) were confiscated in 2009 compared to 21,411,728 items worth EUR 41,686,277 (USD 57,471,797) the year before.

The majority of confiscated items originated in China, Turkey, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Cigarettes were the most prevalent fake goods seized in 2009 (67,564,860 pieces), followed by clothing (1,792,589 items) and cigarette lighters (298,000 items).

It has been noted, however, that certain counterfeit items were less frequently seized in 2009 than in 2008. For instance, in 2008, 433,903 cosmetic products were seized compared to 242,284 in 2009. The same applies to footwear (296,116 pairs in 2008; 99,783 in 2009), leather products, pharmaceutical products and car parts.

At the same time, in 2009 new kinds of counterfeit items were discovered during the inspections, most notably printer cartridges, jewelry, water filters and even nail files, which were not on the list in 2008.

For more information, please contact Roxana Sarghi in our Romania office.

Source: Romanian Customs