Families’ standard of living up in 2018, says government official

Hungary’s economic growth last year allowed the Hungarian people and families to enjoy a higher standard of living, a finance ministry state secretary said in parliament on Thursday.

Addressing a debate on the bill on last year’s final accounts, Péter Benő Bánai said the Hungarian economy had grown well above the average European Union rate in 2018. The state budget became even more stable, the deficit was reduced and the public debt to GDP ratio fell at a higher rate than what had been expected, the state secretary said.

Bánai said it was right to call the 2018 budget a “budget of workers and families”.

The average gross monthly wage rose to 330,000 forints (EUR 1,000) last year, while the real value of pensions also continued to rise, he said. The economy grew by 5.1 percent compared with the planned rate of 4.3 percent even with Hungary having spent less EU funds that year, Banai added.

Earlier in the debate, State Audit Office (ASZ) chief László Domokos said the 2018 budget had been implemented in line with the relevant legal requirements, adding that the budget deficit and the debt-to-GDP ratio had also met the criteria laid out in the law.