Economy in Bucharest:
Bucharest is the centre of the Romanian economy and industry, accounting for around 14.6% of the country's GDP and about one quarter of its industrial production, while being inhabited by only 9% of the country's population. Almost one third of national taxes is paid by Bucharest's citizens and companies. In 2007, at purchasing power parity, Bucharest had a per capita GDP of ?20,057, or 92.2% that of the European Union average and more than twice the Romanian average. The city's strong economic growth has revitalized infrastructure and led to the development of many shopping malls and modern residential towers and high-rise office buildings. In September 2005, Bucharest had an unemployment rate of 2.6%, significantly lower than the national unemployment rate of 5.7%.
Bucharest's economy is mainly centred on industry and services, with services particularly growing in importance in the last ten years. The headquarters of 186,000 firms, including nearly all large Romanian companies are located in Bucharest. An important source of growth since 2000 has been the city's rapidly expanding property and construction sector. Bucharest is also Romania's largest centre for information technology and communications and is home to several software companies operating offshore delivery centres. Romania's largest stock exchange, the Bucharest Stock Exchange, which was merged in December 2005 with the Bucharest-based electronic stock exchange Rasdaq plays a major role in the city's economy.
There are a number of major international supermarket chains such as Carrefour, Cora and METRO. At the moment, the city is undergoing a retail boom, with a large number of supermarkets, and hypermarkets, constructed every year. For more information, see supermarkets in Romania. A few of the largest and most modern shopping centres in Bucharest are AFI Palace Cotroceni, Sun Plaza, Baneasa Shopping City, Bucharest Mall, Plaza Romania, City Mall, Jolie Ville Galleria, Liberty Center and Unirea Shopping Center. There are also a large number of traditional retail arcades and markets; the one at Obor covers about a dozen city blocks and numerous large stores that are not officially part of the market effectively add up to a market district almost twice that size.