Hungary’s industrial output drops by 2.1 pc in August

Output of Hungary’s industrial sector fell by an annnual 2.1 percent in August, after a 8.1 percent drop in July, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Tuesday.

The August figures indicated a move closer to a recovery after falling by around 8 percent in the previous two months. The scale of those declines was an improvement from double-digit drops in April and May because of a pandemic lockdown.

Working day-adjusted data show industrial output edged down by 0.2 percent in August.

KSH said

the output of most branches of manufacturing fell in August but the biggest, such as vehicle manufacturing and, “to a lesser degree”, computer, electronics and optical equipment, increased.

In a month-on-month comparison, industrial output rose by 6.8 percent, based on seasonally and working day-adjusted data.

For the period January-August, industrial output fell by an annual 11 percent.

Analysts told MTI the August industrial output figure was promising from the point of view of the recovery from the crisis.

Péter Virovácz of ING Bank said that unless the second wave of the pandemic has a major impact on the Hungarian economy,

industrial output could return to the levels of previous years in the autumn.

Gergely Suppán of Takarékbank said the contraction in output may shrink to 4-5 percent in the third quarter from around 25 percent in the second, significantly helping a rebound in economic output.

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Source: MTI