Investments recorded by the Romanian economy during the third quarter dropped 29.9% against the same 2008 period, dropping to 16.14 billion lei due to the reduces investment in equipments, a Romanian National Statistics Institute (INS) report reads on Friday.

According to the document, the investments made in equipments, including means of transport, dropped 43.5% against July-September 2008, amounting to 5.38 billion lei. In the Structure of total investments, the sums allocated for equipment shrank in 2009 by 5.5% against the same 2008 interval, to 33.3%.

Regarding new constructions department, INS data show that it shrank by 17.9%, amounting to 9.39 billion lei. But the investment’s amount in the total scheme increased. Since the start of the year, the sum allocated for investments dropped 22.5% against the first nine months of the last year, currently amounting to 43.07 billion lei.

The investment top includes commerce and services (the retail network chains' expansion played their role) - 41.7%, followed by industry (40.6%) and constructions (11.9%). Investments in agriculture weighted 3.4% of the total investments in Romania, while other branches of activity raised 2.4%.