Breaking news! China is investing 3 billion euros in Hungary’s automotive industry in the coming period

China is investing 3 billion euros in Hungary’s automotive industry in the coming period, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said after talks with Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao in Beijing on Monday. This will further strengthen Hungary’s position as a top investment destination in central Europe, he added.

Szijjártó had talks with the chief executives of five major Chinese companies, four of which will implement investments in Hungary’s electric car industry which supplies German manufacturers, according to a foreign ministry statement.

The new investments will make a significant contribution to Hungary’s ability to maintain its economic growth, the minister said, adding that

the projects would be implemented in the interest of renewing Europe’s automotive industry and meeting the demands of German manufacturers.

Chinese companies, he said, consider the country a top destination for their investments in central Europe, noting that by the end of 2022, Hungary had the largest volume of Chinese investments in the region. “We want to continue maintaining this trend … so we’ll encourage additional investments from China, giving them the maximum possible support,” he said.

In the context of the war in Ukraine, Szijjártó said that among the most negative consequences of the war was the re-emergence of blocs in the world which, he added, went against Hungary’s interests. “We want connections, not blocs, to be a basis on which the world operates in the coming period … We think that China’s global initiatives serve to achieve this goal, so we support these,” Szijjártó said, emphasising the need to build EU-China cooperation based on mutual trust and benefits.

“We do not agree with the position that brands China as a threat. Our position is that there are enormous opportunities in cooperation with China as a partner.”

“For this reason, we’d like to develop steady cooperation between the EU and China, and placing Chinese companies on a list of EU sanctions or introducing restrictions on their exports would be insupportable,” Szijjártó said.

He noted that in 2022 China’s GDP expanded to a new record, exceeding the total GPD of the European Union, while it created 12 million urban jobs within a single year.

“These results indicate that Europe can only benefit from cooperation with China, and this is why we are urging strong cooperation built on mutual respect,” the Hungarian foreign minister said.

As we wrote today, government wants to rely on China’s Huawei for digitalisation, says minister in Beijing.

Szijjártó: CATL battery plant encourages further Chinese investment in Hungary

The building of the battery plant by China’s CATL in Debrecen, in eastern Hungary, is already stimulating other Chinese investments in the country, too, Minister Szijjártó said in Beijing on Monday.

This is helping to boost Hungary’s competitiveness within Europe, given that Chinese investments bring the most cutting-edge technology to their new bases, Szijjarto said ahead of a working dinner with CATL CEO Robin Zeng.

Moreover, investments in the electric vehicle industry ensure that Hungary remains a leader in the fight against climate change, according to a ministry statement quoting the minister.

“This is something everyone who feels a responsibility for the environment can be proud of,” Szijjarto said. He noted that 14 percent of global harmful emissions are linked to public road transport, adding that all green and climate goals would remain “a naive illusion” without the transition to electric vehicles.

The minister said competition for Chinese investments in Europe remained fierce.

“It’s clear that besides the competitiveness of Hungary’s investment environment, the excellent political relations between Hungary and China also play a major role in us winning these investment bids over much stronger western countries.” Szijjarto said.

Hungary, China can count on each other on increasing “voice of the peace camp”

Hungary and China can count on each other in “increasing the voice of the peace camp” and the two countries closely cooperate towards achieving a ceasefire in Ukraine as soon as possible and the start of peace talks, Minister Szijjártó, said after meeting Qin Gang, his Chinese counterpart, in Beijing on Monday.

The armed conflict in a neighbouring country poses particularly serious challenges to Hungary which is why Hungary “is arguing for peace” and wants the fighting to end as soon as possible, the ministry quoted Szijjártó as saying.

“Unfortunately, the war rhetoric is extremely strong globally, particularly in the Trans-Atlantic world,” he said, adding that “therefore we need to constantly increase the voice of the peace camp” to make it clear that the global majority support peace. Szijjarto said that Hungary “does attach a due significance to the role of the People’s Republic of China” in increasing the voice of the peace camp and appreciates the efforts China had recently taken towards peace. “We highly appreciate the peace plan China has put forward,” the Hungarian foreign minister said. He welcomed the existence of such a plan in itself, arguing that when it comes to Ukraine, generally everybody talks only about war.

Szijjártó said he agreed with his colleague to closely cooperate in “amplifying the voice of the peace camp”.

The foreign minister met on Monday China’s minister of commerce for talks as well as a number of corporate executives in Beijing before travelling on to Ningbo for the China CEEC Expo.