---
title: "Moldova pivots to service exports as regional forum opens in Chisinau"
url: https://radiomoldova.md/p/85857/moldova-pivots-to-service-exports-as-regional-forum-opens-in-chisinau
published: 2026-09-25T10:40:00Z
language: en
author: "Olga Mînzat"
section: "Economic"
source: radiomoldova.md
---

# Moldova pivots to service exports as regional forum opens in Chisinau

> Moldova generated over $3.2 billion from service exports in 2025, accounting for nearly half of total foreign shipments as the country prepares to showcase new economic opportunities at Moldova Business Week.

![](https://storage.radiomoldova.md/images/71515891-4279-41ea-9273-bfff980f60aa.jpg)

Moldova generated over $3.2 billion from service exports in 2025, accounting for nearly half of total foreign shipments as the country prepares to showcase new economic opportunities at Moldova Business Week.

![](https://storage.radiomoldova.md/images/53fd84ed-3284-4c69-9acb-e5469ae214c2.jpg)

The evolving export structure highlights a shift toward high-value sectors, including information technology, medical travel, and higher education. These structural trends will form the centerpiece of Moldova Business Week 2026, scheduled from September 28 to October 2 in Chisinau, which has already drawn more than 2,000 registered participants across 30 specialized events.

**Regional diversification and investment climate**

While the European Union remains the primary market for Moldovan goods and services, authorities are actively targeting non-EU destinations. Non-EU regional partners including Turkey, Georgia, and Ukraine collectively absorb roughly 16% of national exports, while domestic winemakers and fruit growers continue expanding into Asia and the Middle East.

*“With a conflict in the region, Moldova's attractiveness is inevitably impacted compared to previous years,”* said Irina Tolstousov, Deputy Director of the Invest Moldova Agency. *“Yet foreign investors have chosen not only to remain, but to reinvest in their operations. We want to demonstrate to our international partners that Moldovan companies deliver products and services meeting international quality standards.”*

**Medical tourism and educational export potential**

Healthcare has emerged as a major growth engine within the tertiary sector, with medical travel and international higher education gaining commercial traction. Travel services generated €845 million (approx. 16.5 billion MDL) in 2025 as Moldova welcomed over 500,000 foreign visitors, more than 30% of whom arrived specifically for medical treatments, predominantly from Germany and Italy.

*“Moldovan providers have expanded beyond basic procedures to offer integrated packages covering transport and accommodation,”* said Elena Stepanov, Executive Director of the National Inbound and Domestic Tourism Association of Moldova (ANTRIM). *“Foreign patients benefit from convenient logistics and multilingual medical personnel, particularly in high-demand fields like dentistry.”*

**Macroeconomic imbalances and manufacturing risks**

Despite rapid gains in the service sector, independent economists warn that the expansion masks deeper industrial vulnerabilities. Economic analyst Viorel Gîrbu cautioned that rising service revenues do not compensate for lagging industrial processing and a persistent reliance on raw material exports, which fueled a goods trade deficit of approximately $4 billion during the first seven months of the year.

*“While individual enterprises show positive momentum, macroeconomic indicators point toward structural challenges,”* Gîrbu noted, urging policymakers to anchor national development around top academic institutions, such as the Technical University of Moldova and Nicolae Testemițanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy, to foster long-term industrial resilience beyond the capital city.

Translation by **Iurie Tataru**

***
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