Hungarian business and financial news from the previous week

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

MOL Q2 PROFIT CLIMBS 12 PC

Second-quarter net income of oil and gas company MOL rose by an annual 12 percent to 88.8 billion forints (EUR 291.4m), an earnings report showed. Earnings were over the 70.1 billion forint estimate by analysts polled by Portfolio.hu. The company raised guidance for full-year clean CCS EBITDA to “above 2.3 billion US dollars” from “at least 2 billion US dollars” earlier.

MTEL Q2 PROFIT EDGES UP TO HUF 10.9 BN

Magyar Telekom’s second-quarter after-tax profit edged up an annual 2 percent to 10.9 billion forints, lifted by lower taxes, an earnings report showed. Revenue rose by 9 percent to 153.5 billion forints, but direct cost of sales jumped 28 percent to 62.7 billion forints. EBIDTA fell 2 percent to 47.9 billion forints. MTel booked income tax of 3.9 billion forints for Q2, down 27 percent from the base period. Guidance for full-year revenue was raised to “around 580 billion forints” from 560 billion forints earlier

TWO-THIRDS OF VISITORS TO HUNGARY DURING SWIMMING WORLDS PLAN TO RETURN

As we wrote before, two-thirds of foreigners who visited Hungary during the FINA World Aquatics Championships in July definitely plan to return to the country, a survey by the Hungarian Tourism Agency showed. Four of five visitors said they would recommend Hungary to their friends. The FINA Championships attracted 485,000 spectators on July 14-30.

Another representative survey said, fully 80 percent of Hungarians asked said that hosting the recent world aquatics championships was a good idea.

HUNGARY HOME PRICE INCREASE SLOWS TO 11.6 PC IN Q1

The increase in home prices in Hungary slowed to 11.6 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, a report released by the National Bank of Hungary showed. The annualised increase slowed from 15.2 percent in Q4, 14.9 percent in Q3 and 12.7 percent in Q2 of last year. In Budapest, home prices were up 16.9 percent year-on-year in Q1.

Student rental accommodation in Budapest is being advertised for a monthly 150,000 forints (EUR 490) on average, according to estate agents.

HUNGARY INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT CLIMBS 4.0 PC IN JUNE

Hungary’s industrial output rose by an annual 4.0 percent in June, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said in a first reading of data. Adjusted for the number of workdays, output was up 6.5 percent. The unadjusted increase slowed from an 8.8 percent rise in May. The adjusted increased accelerated from 6.2 percent.

TAKARÉKBANK, SAVINGS COOPS BOOST COMBINED STAKE IN FHB TO 86.76 PC IN BUYOUT OFFER

Takarekbank acquired a little more than 20 million shares of FHB Mortgage Bank in a pubic purchase offer, bringing the stake it holds in the lender, together with stakes held by savings cooperatives with whom it acts in concert, to 86.76 percent, FHB disclosed on the website of the Budapest Stock Exchange. Takarékbank offered 533 forints per share for FHB’s “A”-series ordinary shares and “B”-series preference shares, and 5,330 forints per share for the bank’s “C”-series ordinary shares between June 26 and July 31.

HOME LOAN OUTLAYS HIGHEST IN YEARS

Hungarian banks signed contracts for 66.8 billion forints of new home loans in June, 37.4 percent more than in the same month a year earlier, and 8.9 percent more than in May, data released by the National Bank of Hungary showed. Outlays were last higher in October 2003.

NBH SELLS EIFFEL PALACE FOR EUR 53.8 M

The National Bank of Hungary (NBH) said it sold the landmark Eiffel Palace office building in the centre of Budapest for net 53.8 million euros to a fund managed by Corpus Sireo, base in Luxembourg. The NBH called an open tender for the sale of the building in March 2017. It paid net 45.3 million euros for the property in the summer of 2014.

HUNGAST ACQUISITION OF SODEXO MAGYARORSZÁG CLEARED

Hungary’s Competition Office (GVH) said it cleared family-owned cafeteria company Hungast Holding’s takeover of peer Sodexo Magyarország. The companies’ combined market share of Hungary’s school cafeteria business is 35-45 percent, but GVH said the transaction had no verifiable impact on horizontal market competition.

OTP JELZÁLOGBANK HOME LOAN PRODUCTS CERTIFIED “CONSUMER-FRIENDLY” BY NBH

Home loan products offered by OTP Jelzálogbank, the mortgage arm of Hungary’s biggest commercial lender, have been certified “consumer-friendly” by the National Bank of Hungary, the central bank said. The NBH recently rolled out the consumer-friendly home loan certification to counter high interest margins and a low rate of borrower refinancing. Lenders could apply for the certification from June 1. Products offered by MKB Bank, K+H Bank, Erste, FHB Commercial Bank and 50 members of Hungary’s integrated savings cooperatives have also been certified.

Photo: http://eiffelpalace.hu

Source: MTI