Forum on German-Hungarian economic relations in Berlin

Hungary must continue to provide the most competitive environment for investors in Europe, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, told a forum on German-Hungarian economic relations in Berlin on Monday.

Although Europe is facing the threat of economic recession, the Hungarian government is not giving up its goal of maintaining the most competitive investment climate in Europe in taxation and other fields, Szijjártó told the forum held on the occasion of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s visit to Berlin.

In this spirit, the Hungarian government continues to reject the idea of the global corporate minimum tax, whose introduction would bring about a 6 percentage point increase in Hungary’s corporate tax rate, he said.

Minister of Technology and Industry László Palkovics said that the government “really dislikes” the extra profit taxes and introduced them only out of necessity. He added that these taxes do not discriminate against foreign-owned companies and would be phased out as soon as possible.

Hans-Peter Kemser, head of the BMW plant being built in Debrecen, in eastern Hungary, said the conditions in the city were ideal for building and operating the German carmaker’s “most modern factory”.

“BMW’s future starts in Debrecen,” Kemser said. The plant represents “a completely new approach”, not just in terms of what it will produce, but also because it will run exclusively on energy generated from renewable resources, he added.

Szijjártó said Hungary was the “flag bearer” of the “revolutionary” transformation of the auto industry. He noted that Debrecen will also be home to Chinese battery maker CATL’s manufacturing plant.

Since 2010, Hungary has emerged stronger from every crisis it has experienced, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told an economic forum in Berlin on Monday, details HERE.