HungaryTrends – The previous week in business and finance

See below MTI’s main business and financial news from the previous week:

AUDI HUNGARIA PRODUCES ALMOST 2M ENGINES, MORE THAN 160,000 VEHICLES IN 2019

German car maker Audi turned out almost 2 million engines and more than 160,000 vehicles at its base in Gyor, northwest Hungary, last year, Audi Hungaria said. Audi Hungaria made 1,968,742 engines at the plant, 14,441 more than in 2018. The number of vehicles that rolled off the line in Gyor rose by 64,817 to 164,817.

• Hungary – Decreasing property prices in 2020?!

CJEU ADVISER STANDS BY HUNGARY APPEAL OF PROGRESSIVE RATES DECISION

A top adviser of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) said an earlier appeal by Hungary against a prohibition of the application of progressive rates for tobacco company healthcare contributions and supermarket oversight fees should not have been rejected. Advocate General Juliane Kokott said in an opinion that Hungary’s appeal was well-founded, thus a decision rejecting it should be voided, while the ruling on the suspension of the progressive taxes should be annulled.

HUNGARY TO ATTRACT MORE BOLLYWOOD PRODUCTIONS

Hungary is close to sealing a film production deal with India that could bring more Bollywood projects to the country, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó told MTI by phone from New Delhi. He added that Indians like to visit the places they see in Indian films, noting that the number of Indian tourists who travelled to Hungary last year rose 25 percent to more than 50,000.

• New foreign investors have appeared on the Hungarian bonds market!

INSURERS AUGUR SLOWER GROWTH IN 2020

Hungarian insurers’ revenue from premiums climbed 7-10 percent to around 1,100 billion forints (EUR 3.3bn) last year, but growth is expected to be a more modest 3-5 percent this year, the deputy head of the Association of Hungarian Insurance Companies (MABISZ) said. Mihaly Erdos said last year’s revenue growth was driven by a rise in premiums for mandatory vehicle insurance policies which increased as a 30 percent insurance tax was incorporated into premiums.

LISZT FERENC PASSENGER NUMBERS REACH 16.2 M IN 2019

Passenger numbers at Liszt Ferenc International rose 8.8 percent to 16.2 million last year, operator Budapest Airport told MTI. Liszt Ferenc’s cargo volume came to 135,521 tonnes. READ MORE HERE.

• Two new direct flights connecting China and Hungary launched!

AKK LAUNCHES 20Y BOND

The Government Debt Management Agency (AKK) sold 17.0 billion forints of a new 20-year bond at auction, raising its original offer by 2.0 billion forints after primary dealers bid for 31.8 billion of the security, now the longest maturity. Average yield was 3.0 percent. AKK will include the bond in its list of benchmarks from the second auction of the security, in eight weeks.