Seiren’s HUF 15 bn investment to create 170 new jobs in SW Hungary

Japan’s Seiren has inaugurated a HUF 15 billion (EUR 40.3m) car seat cover plant in Pécs, in southwest Hungary, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Tuesday, adding that the company’s first plant in Europe will create 170 jobs.

The government supported the investment with a HUF 4.5 billion grant, Szijjártó said, according to a ministry statement.

The plant will produce some 2.5 million metres of seat cover for Europe’s car market in an eco-friendly technology, the minister said.

Despite the unprecedented challenges faced by the global economy over the last three years, the auto industry’s transition to electric vehicles and the global expansion of Eastern companies remains uninterrupted, Szijjártó said.

Whereas in 2008, 81 percent of all global investments came from the West and 19 percent from the East, last year 55 percent of all investments were financed by Eastern capital and just 45 percent came from the West, he said.

Szijjártó said it was no surprise that there was fierce competition in the West, including Europe, for investments by strong Eastern businesses.

“We, Hungarians have entered this race as well, and I believe I can say without any exaggeration or complacency that we’re successful in it,” Szijjártó said.

Hungary’s low taxes, its uniquely stable political system in a European context, and the absence of discrimination based on geography make the country an extremely attractive investment destination, he said.

Source: MTI