Orbán cabinet silently took on another huge foreign USD loan before the elections

Hungary’s state debt manager has turned to the market via a private placement to issue more dollar-denominated bonds maturing in 2035, Bloomberg reports. This taps the original USD 1 billion loan, with a further USD 1.2 billion now sold.

USD 1.2bn more ahead of the April elections

The Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) first launched 5-, 10- and 30-year dollar bonds totalling USD 4 billion last June. Bloomberg says the latest tranche adds another USD 1.2 billion to the 10-year paper. The outstanding volume of these September 2035 bonds now stands at USD 2.2 billion.

The agency has made no official announcement, probably owing to strict US rules that bar issuers from public disclosure for a few days until settlement. A formal statement may follow shortly. Private placements gauge investor demand first, then sell directly to a select group.

The original 2035 bonds carried a 6 per cent coupon; this tap is believed to have priced at a lower yield. Under ÁKK’s financing plan unveiled last December, Hungary budgeted HUF 2,541 billion (about EUR 6.5 billion) in foreign currency issuance for 2026, including up to EUR 2 billion from the EU’s shared SAFE facility.

With EUR 3 billion in bonds already placed in January, room remained for this deal. Even so, if plans hold, net foreign currency sales for the rest of the year will be modest, capped at about EUR 0.5 billion.

Chinese loan expires in 2027

The Orbán government began tapping foreign loans in spring 2024, borrowing €1 billion from Chinese banks (China Development Bank, Eximbank, Bank of China) for infrastructure. Those so-called panda bonds mature in April 2027.

‘American financial shield’ in doubt

Back from his meeting with President Trump, Prime Minister Orbán spoke of a so-called financial protection shield agreed with the US leader. Trump later said in an interview, however, that while the Hungarian premier sought such an arrangement, he had not approved it. The government has since described talks on such a tool but shared no further details.

Teachers to receive HUF 150,000 (EUR 400) allowance within weeks

Teachers will receive a HUF 150,000 allowance (EUR 400) within a few weeks, Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, said at a weekly press briefing on Thursday.

The government decided on the HUF 150,000 allowance at this week’s cabinet meeting, the minister said. Hungary made the commitment to the European Union that the average teacher salary will reach 80% of the average graduate salary in Hungary, Gulyás said, adding that the latter increased more than expected last year.

If you missed:

• PM Orbán claimed Trump promised financial shield for Hungary — but the U.S. President denies it
• Hungarian state takes on EUR 3 billion in new loans
• Hungary may get billions of euros as the EU rolls out war-zone border aid

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