Japan

Unveiling of a 20.6 million euros investment in Hungary by Japan’s SIIX Corporation

Budapest, November 16 (MTI) – From Jan. 1, Hungary’s state investment-promotion system will be overhauled so that budget support for investments is funnelled to companies not only on the basis of how many jobs they create but also taking into account their technological standards and value-added, the foreign affairs and trade minister said on Wednesday.

Péter Szijjártó told a news conference that central funding would be available to companies that bring new types of technology to Hungary as well as those that maintain existing workforce levels.

Further, the support system for training will also be transformed so as to ensure that part-time workers also gain access, he said. Also, related red tape will be cut, Szijjártó added, speaking at the unveiling of a 6.4 billion forint (EUR 20.6m) investment in Nagykőrös, central Hungary, by Japan’s SIIX Corporation, which is creating 300 jobs.

The government will provide a 1.3 billion forint non-refundable grant for the project.

Szijjártó added that the government’s economic policy priorises harnessing the flow of capital from east to west in Hungary, which already receives the highest capital investment among central European countries from East Asia.

Fully 151 Japanese companies have operations in Hungary — including 46 with production capacities — employing around 30,000 people and using cutting-edge technologies. The government has signed seven strategic agreements with companies from Japan, Hungary’s second most important trading partner from East Asia. Bilateral trade increased by 8 percent in the first eight months of this year compared with the same period of last year, Szijjártó said.

Koji Yanase, executive officer of the company and the managing director for SIIX Europe GmbH said the plant should be operational by the third quarter of 2017.

SIIX Corporation established its Hungarian manufacturing subsidiary at the end of October. The company has a manufacturing base in Slovakia as its production center in Europe. The Hungarian base is being set up “to respond to the expanded business in Europe, where further economic recovery is expected in the future.”

Photo: MTI

Parliament speaker holds talks with Japanese PM, lower house president

Tokyo (MTI) – Hungarian Parliamentary Speaker László Kövér held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as well as with Tadamori Oshima, the speaker of the lower house of the Japanese parliament, the Hungarian parliament’s press chief said on Friday.

japan-hungary-4At the talks the sides reviewed Hungarian-Japanese political, economic, educational and cultural relations and discussed the possibilities of strengthening cooperation between the two countries’ parliaments, Zoltán Szilágyi told MTI.

Kövér told his partners that Japan is a highly important strategic partner for Hungary and developing bilateral relations was in Hungary’s interest. Fostering EU-Japan ties is equally important for Hungary, he said.

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The Japanese prime minister briefed the Hungarian house speaker about his recent official visit to several countries in Europe with the aim to prepare a G7 summit in Japan.

Kövér extended to Shinzo Abe the Hungarian prime minister’s invitation to pay an official visit to Hungary.

Heading a delegation, the Hungarian house speaker is on an official visit in South Korea and Japan this week.

Photo: MTI

House speaker holds talks with Japanese parliament upper house president

Tokyo, May 12 (MTI) – Hungarian House Speaker László Kövér met Masaaki Yamazaki, the president of the upper house of the Japanese parliament, during his official visit to Tokyo, he said on Thursday.

At the talks Kövér expressed hope that his current visit will pave the way for a more intensive cooperation between the two countries’ parliaments, the house speaker told MTI in a statement.

Masaaki Yamazaki said the visit by the Hungarian delegation led by Köver is a highly important step in further strengthening relations and cooperation between the two countries.

Concerning bilateral economic ties, Kövér noted that Japan is the largest investor in Hungary from the Asian region. Japanese businesses have so far invested 4 billion euros in Hungary and employ 26,000 people.

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He further highlighted cooperation in culture and education, noting that there are currently 300 Japanese medical students in Hungary.

As part of his programme, the Hungarian house speaker was received by Emperor Akihito and his wife at a private audience.

Kövér is scheduled to meet later in the day members of the Japanese-Hungarian Friendship Group, as well as Japanese business leaders.

Photo: MTI

Japan’s most popular word in connection with Hungary

Nick Kapur, an American historian revealed which words Japanese people search for the most in connection with European countries. The study was based on Japanese Google’s autocomplete suggestions, szeretlekmagyarorszag.hu reports.

Surprisingly, the most curious thing about Hungary was not gulyás, paprika or even Ferenc Puskás. The most searched-for Hungarian word is lard, which is pig fat, the main ingredient of many traditional Hungarian recipes.

Other countries’ food specialties, such as the Romanian honey, the Belgian chocolate, or the Bulgarian yoghurt were also popular. Other finds reveal that, according to stereotypes of European countries, the Netherlands is famous for their tulips, Ireland is very green, and in Denmark everyone is happy, but they also mention luxurious prisons in Norway and the Greek financial collapse.

Copy editor: bm

Japan Credit Rating Agency upgrades Hungary outlook to positive

Daily News Hungary economy

Budapest (MTI) – Tokyo-based Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) has upgraded the outlook of Hungary’s long-term issuer ratings from stable to positive, the economy ministry said on Thursday.

JCR’s Foreign Currency Long-term Issuer Rating for Hungary is BBB and its Local Currency Long-term Issuer Rating is BBB+.

The outlook for both ratings is changed from stable to positive, JCR said in a news release.

JCR said Hungary’s financial system will improve, citing the conversion of FX mortgages into forint at the beginning of 2015 and the establishment of an asset management company (MARK) to purchase non-performing commercial real estate loans from banks or the National Bank of Hungary (NBH).

It also said that the budget deficit has remained below 3 percent of GDP since 2012 amid a gradual decline of the public debt-GDP ratio.

JCR noted that Hungary’s external debt remains large compared with those of other sovereign governments rated in the BBB range but it shrank to less than 110 percent of GDP at the end of September 2015 from 148 percent at the end of 2009.

As another positive factor the current-account balance ended 2015 with a surplus estimated at more than 5 percent of GDP.

Farm minister holds talks on Hungarian-Japanese cooperation in Berlin

Daily News Hungary economy

Berlin, January 15 (MTI) – Farm Minister Sandor Fazekas discussed Hungarian-Japanese cooperation with Hiromichi Matsushima, vice minister for agriculture, forestry and fisheries, on the sidelines of Gruene Woche, the world’s largest food fair in Berlin on Friday.

Japan is Hungary’s main agricultural trading partner in Asia, Fazekas told MTI.

Hungary exports a huge volume of Mangalica pork to Japan where the Tokaj wine is a highly popular product as well, he said.

Hungary’s Mangalica export to Japan was worth 74 million euros in 2014 and went up to 100 million euros in 2015, according to preliminary data, he noted.

Further exports to Japan include poultry and other meat products, as well as honey, he said.

Fazekas said he discussed with his partner cooperation possibilities in farming certain types of cherry and sour cherry, as well as rice.

They proposed cooperation in veterinary health with focus on education and in the field of gene banks.

Fazekas expressed hope that a trade agreement which is being currently prepared between the EU and Japan would soon be sealed and will allow boosting Hungary’s sales to that country.

Japan loves the Hungarian honey

One of the biggest Japanese market chains, CGC Japan, accepted the Hungarian Aranynektár Kft. as one of their suppliers. The first package has already been sent to Japan, writes hvg.hu.

According to Ferenc Takács, director of the Dunavarsány based Aranynektár Kft., this new-found connection could triple Hungary’s honey export to Japan, which can reach 600 tons and 1 billion HUF. Takács added that reaching out to Japan came just in time as the past three years’ unfavourable weather caused a significant decrease in Hungary’s honey export which resulted in losing important markets, and it was questionable where this year’s honey could be exported.

Hungary produces an average of 22-24.000 tons of honey every year and most of it is exported at a price of 70 billion HUF. Aranynektár Kft, founded in 1989, exported 3000 tons of honey last year which was worth 4.5 billion HUF.

The company is planning to build new halls, and packing lines to keep up with the demand. The new equipment will make it possible to produce an additional 1500 tons of honey. The project is estimated to be cost 300 million HUF; the company will cover it from its own resources, and will apply for government funds as well – Ferenc Takács said.

based on an article of hvg.hu
translated by Adrienn Sain

Japanese architect signs contract to design House of Hungarian Music

Budapest, June 10 (MTI) – Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto signed a contract on Wednesday to design the Bartok Centre – House of Hungarian Music to be built in Budapest’s City Park as part of the Liget Project.

Liget Budapest Project ministerial commissioner Laszlo Baan said after the signing that the contract covers the preparation of plans, to be submitted by the end of this year, after which a public procurement tender for the construction can be invited in the first part of next year. The building is planned to open in the spring of 2018.

Fujimoto said it was a most exciting challenge to integrate a building into nature, and the reason he submitted a bid was that the House of Hungarian Music will be built in the middle of a park.

Photo: MTI