Exchange rates: lei (MLD) per US$1 (end of period)—8.3226 (December 1998), 8.3395 (1998), 4.6605 (1997), 4.6500 (1996), 4.4990 (1995), 4.2700 (1994); period average—4.6758 (January 1998), 4.6236 (1997), 4.6045 (1996), 4.4958 (1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 600,000 (1998 est.)
Telephone system: the Ministry of Information, Computers, and
Telecommunications controls telecommunications; the carrier is
Modtelecom
domestic: local—Chisinau has a fiber-optic loop and one cellular GSM
provider; the waiting list for telephones is long; local service
outside Chisinau is poor; intercity—Moldova's two fiber-optic
segments form a synchronous digital hierarchy ring through Romania's
system; an analog backbone system runs from south to north in Moldova
international: two fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to
Romania; worldwide service can be available to Moldova through this
infrastructure; additional analog lines are to Russia; Intelsat,
Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 8, shortwave NA (1999)
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 1 national station, 3 private stations, 15 small local stations outside Chisinau (1998)
Televisions: 93 televisions/100 people (1996)
Transportation