Scientific Bulletin 2025/No1

This article analyzes the monetary policy of the European Central Bank and inflation trends in the euro area between 2019 and 2024, using official statistical data provided by Eurostat and the standard HICP indicator. The study tracks the dynamics of total inflation, its component structure, and the differences between total and core inflation in the context of major economic shocks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the energy crisis of 2022. The analysis highlights the transition from a low inflation regime in the pre-pandemic period to a severe inflationary episode in 2021–2022, followed by a gradual disinflation process in 2023–2024. The results show that, although headline inflation returned to levels close to the ECB’s price stability objective in 2024, its composition indicates persistent domestic pressures, particularly in the services sector. The article highlights the importance of structural analysis of inflation for the calibration of monetary policy and the relevance of using a mix of monetary instruments in a monetary union characterized by economic heterogeneity.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a crucial component in enhancing cyber resilience within the European banking sector. The rapid digital transformation has brought about significant cyber risks, necessitating advanced solutions for data protection, business continuity, and maintaining customer trust. AI plays a vital role in real-time anomaly detection, risk anticipation, and automated incident response, thereby optimizing threat defence and financial risk management through predictive analytics. Despite its benefits, AI's integration poses challenges related to data protection and ethical decision-making, requiring strict compliance with European and international legislation such as GDPR, NIS2 Directive, Basel III regulations, and the AI Regulation. This study offers a descriptive analysis and examines AI's impact on cyber resilience, highlighting its technological advantages and legal implications in the banking sector. Innovative models for AI implementation are explored to develop effective security and financial risk management mechanisms, emphasizing the need for proactive threat detection, operational efficiency, and adaptability to evolving cyber threats.

This paper aims to carry out a bibliometric mapping and review of technology's importance in the retail industry, especially chatbots. This study delves into the characteristics of the articles published between 2019 and 2024 on artificial intelligence, chatbots, and retail. Through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis, we aim to uncover the trends in scientific literature. We used VOSviewer software for bibliometric analysis. We used search terms associated with retail chatbots and retail technologies. Based on the specialized literature review, the paper also presents possible future research directions, highlighting the opportunities for scientific exploitation of this research topic.

Business sustainability has become a key topic in organizational growth literature, gaining more importance as environmental changes have accelerated over the past decade. With the shifts in the global economy that allowed many companies to develop, sustainable development has become crucial. It helps companies voluntarily integrate social and environmental concerns into their operations, while also engaging with stakeholders and realizing the long-term benefits it brings to the business. This paper also explores business sustainability from the perspective of two multinational companies in Romania, as this concept is still relatively new in the market, but increasingly relevant in today’s world. Given its growing significance, this research focuses on business sustainability, offering a deeper understanding of the process—from theory to the challenges, risks involved, and tools.