trade
Hungary prepared to help release grain stuck in Ukraine
Hungary is prepared to cooperate closely in helping to expand efforts to free grain stuck in Ukraine, István Nagy, the minister of agriculture, said after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart in Lviv on Thursday.
The current grain crisis concerns not just Ukraine and Hungary, but the entire world, the agriculture ministry cited Nagy as saying. If Ukraine’s seaports remain closed and the country’s grain is not shipped out, parts of the world could face a famine, and the people living there could set off for Europe, triggering a severe migrant crisis, Nagy said. He urged immediate and long-term solutions to the grain crisis, saying Hungary was prepared to cooperate in expanding efforts to move grain out of Ukraine. He underlined the importance of developing rail transport, trans-shipment ports and silos, adding that the European Union may also support such investments.
Nagy called for the establishment of a business zone in the Hungary-Ukraine border region that could house grain processing facilities, arguing that such an investment would ensure long-term food security for the world.
But these border-region investments should also serve to expand bilateral economic ties, the minister said. “Our north-eastern neighbour looks to Hungary as a solution to the ongoing crisis and has expressed its gratitude to the Hungarian government for its constructive approach,” Nagy added.
Ukraine is the world’s fourth largest grain exporter, representing 9 percent of the global market share of exports, he said. It also accounts for 42 percent of global sunflower oil and 16 percent of corn supplies, he added. “Before the war, our neighbour produced enough grain for 400 million people. Nearly 90 percent of its exports were handled through the Black Sea ports,” Nagy said. The minister urged an immediate ceasefire and talks between Russia and Ukraine. Hungary, since the very beginning, has argued for peace, he noted.
“Today it’s clear to everyone that the war hurts Europe the most,”
Nagy added.
Later in the day, Nagy discussed grain exports with Viktor Mikita, head of the military administration of Subcarpathia. Nagy said his discussions focused on operational and practical issues, and they agreed to prepare a joint action plan to be presented to the European Union, with a request for funds to expand capacity at border crossings. The 4,000 tonnes of wheat that cross the Ukraine-Hungary border each day potentially could be doubled by increasing efficiencies, though this would not unlock the current logjam, he said. “This is why a much bigger infrastructure investment is needed,” the minister said.
Mikita said Transcarpathia had a big role to play in solving the grain crisis caused by the blockade of the Black Sea ports. Establishing alternative routes on land is an interstate project, though local public administrations must also play a role in this, he added.
Government’s development targets revealed for American entrepreneurs
Hungary’s government will continue to cultivate high-level cooperation with economic players, the minister of technology and industry told a business forum of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) on Monday.
Forums such as the Artificial Intelligence Coalition, the Hungarian Hydrogen Alliance and the Circular Economic Technology Platform (KGTP) have been set up recently to ensure effective communication, László Palkovics said.
Regarding the ministry of technology and industry, which was set up in May with the inauguration of the fifth Orbán government, Palkovics said it was the largest portfolio. It has launched a reform of R+D+I financing, carrying on with the reform of Hungarian higher education, and it is introducing market-sensitive courses in adult education, he said.
“The government aims for Hungary’s economy to be Hungarian, green and high tech,” Palkovics said. It has launched economic development programmes, and it is ensuring that all companies can access information on the government funding they are eligible for, he said.
Regarding transport policy, Palkovics noted the launch of an integrated public transport system. Some 20 percent of Hungary’s motorways were built between 2018 and 2022, he added. Railway development is a priority of the government, which has launched a modernisation programme of the network as well as the development of the Budapest-Belgrade line, he said.
Another focus is the climate policy action plan, Palkovics said.
The government will invest some 16 billion euros in 25 projects until 2030 to strengthen energy sovereignty,
he said. The ministry will continue to pursue the technology and industry policy of the past four years, Palkovics said. The main aims will be to improve productivity and competitiveness, to develop sustainable and high value-added industry and a stable, affordable and sustainable energy supply, as well as full employment to support economic growth, he said.
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Trade union: shops should close on Sunday afternoons in Hungary
Zoltán Karsai, the chairman of the Trade Union of Commercial Employees (KASZ), spoke about the idea yesterday. He said that opening hours should be reduced in Hungary because of the labour shortage affecting the retail sector. As a result, all shops should close at noon every Sunday.
Index.hu reported about Karsai’s announcement today. He wrote that the sector has been struggling with labour shortage even though employers continuously try to attract new employees with multiple methods. Despite all efforts, they cannot hire the needed number of people. Therefore, the KASZ suggested the reduction of opening hours in Hungary.
As a result, companies would be able to fill the busiest periods with the required workforce. Thanks to that, service quality could be improved, and firms would be able to reduce the workload on the individual employees, he added.
Therefore, the trade union would like to reduce the opening hours and close shops at noon every Sunday. KASZ believes such a regulation would be beneficial for the employees’ work and private life balance and indirectly every people. Firstly, they will start negotiations with other trade unions of the sector’s workers. They regard it as their final goal to create a regulation applying to all sector employees.
Interestingly, between 15 March 2015 and 23 April 2016, the government banned almost all shops and malls to open on Sundays. The initiative came from the Christian Democratic Party, Fidesz’s ally, and affected all shops having a floor area reaching 400 square metres. The idea behind the legislature was to give a rest day for families. The trade volume of the big chains decreased (most of them are multinational). Meanwhile, the (mostly Hungarian-owned) smaller shops got additional revenue.
There were, of course, exceptions: tobacco shops, pharmacies, fuel stations, drugstores and newsvendors. Moreover, bakeries could remain open but only until noon.
Opposition parties and NGOs tried to abolish the law but were unsuccessful until 2015 November, when a referendum question passed. As a result, the government abolished the ban in April 2016.
The impacts of Bitcoin trading in Liechtenstein
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When it comes to trading Bitcoin, there are a lot of things that you need to keep in mind. One of them is the fact that this is a very volatile market. The prices can go up and down really quickly and you need to be prepared for that. Another thing is that you need to find a good exchange rate. Otherwise, you might lose a lot of money when converting your Bitcoin into another currency.
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These are just a few things to keep in mind when trading Bitcoin in Liechtenstein. Make sure that you do your research and find a good exchange rate before starting.
Authority: EU hindering ‘legislation to protect youth’
Hungary’s authority in charge of regulated activities (SZTFH) has launched a campaign against the illegal trade of e-cigarette Elf Bar and other herbal products, but “Brussels bureaucracy is hindering passage of a relevant package”, SZTFH told MTI on Thursday.
In its statement, the authority said that an EU committee had turned down its appeal for an expedited procedure to deal with the matter, adding that “despite this bureaucratic move SZTFH will continue to use every legal means to restrict smoking among juveniles and to protect their health as well as the legal [tobacco] market”.
The authority noted that herbal products used as an alternative to smoking tobacco were gaining popularity, and were distributed outside legal tobacco retail outlets. They can also be purchased via the internet and were “freely accessible to young people”, it said.
The authority said the illegal trade of Elf Bars was a challenge, while young consumers were its primary risk group. National tax authority NAV is preparing for crackdowns to remove the product from the market, while SZTFH will launch a campaign in summer camps, and in primary and secondary schools from September on, the statement said.
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Hungary’s industrial output up 3.1 pc yr/yr in April
Hungarian industrial output grew by an annual 3.1 percent in April, slowing from 3.6 percent in the previous month, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Tuesday in a second reading of data.
Month on month, output fell by 1.6 percent, based on seasonally and working day-adjusted data.
In January-April, industrial output increased by 4.9 percent from the same period a year earlier.
Output of automotive companies, accounting for 21 percent of manufacturing sector output in April, dropped by an annual 7.1 percent, KSH said.
The detailed data show output of the computer, electronics and optical equipment segment, accounting for 10 percent of manufacturing, increased by an annual 4.9 percent.
Output of the food, drinks and tobacco segment, which made up 12 percent of manufacturing sector output, rose by 11.9 percent.
Read alsoPassenger transport up and freight down in the Q1 in Hungary
Indo-Pacific Forum in Prague: ‘Global East-West cooperation needed’
Within Europe, the hope of cooperation between East and West has evaporated for the time being due to the war in Ukraine, but on a global level this cooperation is ever more important, Péter Szijjártó, the Hungarian foreign minister, said at the Indo-Pacific Forum held in Prague on Monday.
Szijjártó called for talks with countries in South-East Asia on prospective partnership and cooperation agreements to accelerate, arguing that intensifying foreign relations would strengthen the EU. Striking free trade agreements with Indonesia, New Zealand and Australia would be key in that regard.
A rethink of East-West supply chains for the European economy was vitally important, Szijjártó said, adding that
“failure to improve economic cooperation between Europe and the Indo-Pacific region would deprive both sides of significant growth potential, which is why it is the task of governments and institutions in Brussels to strengthen active relations to their mutual benefit.”
Szijjártó said Hungary’s economy is the tenth most open globally, noting that exports account for over 85 percent of its economic output.
“Our exports last year grew by 25 percent and our trade with the Indo-Pacific region exceeded a record 13.5 billion dollars,”
he said, adding that Hungary was performing well in cooperation with South-East Asia, and the region has been the largest investor in the country for the past three consecutive years.
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“So I don’t think it’s surprising that Hungary is urging pragmatic cooperation between Europe and Asia’s south-eastern region with mutual benefits in mind,”
said Szijjártó.
“We in Hungary have done much to improve the country’s competitiveness,”
Szijjártó said, adding that it was now the EU and the European Commission’s turn to dismantle trade barriers still standing in the way of Europe developing trade relations with some of the world’s fastest growing regions.
Speaking about cooperation with China, Szijjártó said:
“It must be admitted that today, irrespective of political ideology and the disputes they have created, the European economy cannot, could not, properly function without Chinese supplies, and it must be conceded too that Chinese investments have greatly contributed to Europe’s economic development and modernisation,”
the foreign minister said. He called for talks on an EU-China investment protection and promotion agreement to be concluded as soon as possible.
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Oppisition DK calls for zero pc VAT for basic foods
The opposition Democratic Coalition has called on ruling Fidesz to vote for its earlier proposal cutting VAT for basic foodstuffs to zero percent.
DK spokesman Balázs Barkóczi told an online press conference on Monday that food prices had jumped by 25 percent in May. Citing the magazine G7.hu, Barkóczi said
the price of cheese, butter, pork, pasta and another 30 items had grown significantly last month, and the cabinet’s “window dressing” has failed to stop rising prices, he said.
Fidesz reaction
Fidesz said in a statement in response that had it been up to Ferenc Gyurcsány, DK’s leader, then prices would have risen four-fold, as the left-wing would have scrapped the price cap on household utility bills and caps on vehicle fuels and basic foods.
Also, electricity prices would more than triple, while natural gas would increase more than five-fold, the statement said.
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Passenger transport up and freight down in the Q1 in Hungary
The volume of passenger transport in Hungary rose by an annual 69 percent in the first quarter, to 4.9 billion passenger-kilometres, but was still 27 percent under the volume in the same period in 2019, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Monday.
Passenger transport
Bus travel accounted for 49 percent of all passenger-kilometres, while rail made up 32 percent and air travel 19 percent.
The data do not include local transport.
The number of passenger-kilometres registered for local transport in Hungary rose by 49 percent to 1.6 billion during the period.
Public transport in the city of Budapest alone accounted for close to 1.2 billion of those passenger kilometres.
Freight transport
Freight transport performance was 13.6 billion tonne-kilometers, down 4.6% year-on-year and 11% compared to the first quarter of 2019. Domestically, performance was 1.2% lower year-on-year, while internationally it was 7.2% lower.
Domestically, rail and inland waterway freight transport performance decreased, while other modes increased, with road freight transport accounting for the largest share (80 percent), up 1.6 percent.
Road freight transport, which also accounts for the largest share of international transport, was 4.9% down on the first quarter of last year, while rail freight was 14% down.
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KSH: Hungary trade balance shows EUR 475 m deficit in April – UPDATE
Hungary’s trade balance showed a 475 million euro deficit in April, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said in a first reading of data released on Wednesday.
Hungary, an export-driven economy where trade surpluses are the norm, had a trade deficit for the tenth month in a row, KSH said.
Exports rose by an annual 12.1 percent to 11.052 billion euros and imports climbed by 21.1 percent to 11.527 billion.
Trade with other European Union member states accounted for 77 percent of exports and 70 percent of imports.
Further deterioration expected
Magyar Bankholding chief analyst Gergely Suppan said with growing investments and consumptions the foreign trade balance is expected to deteriorate further, but in the second half of the year it could stabilise with the easing of the global chip shortage and new production capacities coming online. Because of the war in Ukraine, the trade balance could end up being negative for this year, after a 1.9 billion euro surplus in 2021, he added.
Századvég chief macro analyst Gábor Regős said the weakness of the automotive sector is proving to be a drag on export growth, while also noting that consumption and investments are boosting imports.
Regős said price changes are also affecting the trade balance, as import prices are growing at a faster rate than export prices, because of a boom in global energy prices.
Erste Bank macroeconomic analyst János Nagy said monthly trade figures should show a deficit in the short term. Until the difficulties of the automotive sector lessen, goods export will not be able to grow dynamically. The rise in energy costs becoming persistent pose a downside risk, but starting in H2 exports could start catching up to imports with the global economy recovering and through the huge capacity expansions already announced, he added.
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Last week in business and finance in Hungary
You can find the Hungarian News Agency’s main business and financial news from the previous week below.
LIDL STAYS HUNGARY’S TOP FMCG CHAIN
German-owned discount chain Lidl remained the biggest player on Hungary’s FMCG market last year, a ranking compiled by the magazine Trade showed.
Lidl had gross turnover of 921.8 billion forints (EUR 2.3bn) in 2021.
Runner-up on the list was Spar, with turnover of 791.8 billion forints, followed by Tesco, with sales of 765.0 billion forints.
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SZERENCSEJÁTÉK REVENUE CLIMBS OVER HUF 700 BN IN 2021
Revenue of Szerencsejáték rose by 22 percent to 701 billion forints (EUR 1.8bn) last year, the state-owned lottery company said. About 490 billion forints of revenue was paid out as winnings. Szerencsejáték paid some
131 billion forints into the central budget in tax,
contributions, fees and dividend.
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Despite restrictions, Hungarian grain continues to go abroad
In the last two months, the government did not exercise its right of first refusal regarding the export of Hungarian grain, the Ministry for Agriculture said.
3 million tonnes of grain exported
According to napi.hu, the government declared in March that exporting wheat, rye, barley, oat, corn, soybean or sunflower must be announced in advance to the National Food Chain Safety Office. The state has the right to buy it up if there is a shortage on the market due to the war in Ukraine. Furthermore, the European Union would like to know the amount of grain stored, so they prescribed an obligation for the member states to report it.
Népszava asked the Ministry of Agriculture whether they baulked any export agreements. The ministry said that 3 million tonnes of grain have gone abroad since they introduced mandatory reporting. In comparison with previous years, the amount is not higher. Thus, the ministry did not intervene. However, they prolonged the end date of mandatory reporting to mid-July.
More than 11 thousand Ukrainian refugees came to Hungary!
A total of 5,702 people crossed into Hungary directly from Ukraine on Thursday, while another 5,352 people from Ukraine crossed from Romania, the national police headquarters said.
The police issued temporary residence permits valid for thirty days to 425 people, the police website said on Friday. Holders of such permits must contact a local immigration office near their place of residence within thirty days to apply for permanent documents, it added. The Budapest police received 194 refugees, 80 children among them, arriving by train, according to the municipal police website.
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Is Orbán right? Has the Croatian seashore or part of it ever belonged to Hungary?
Those who follow Hungarian politics know that Hungary does not support the European Committee’s idea to expand sanctions on Russian energy, including oil deliveries. Orbán and his government repeatedly argued that a decision of such kind would result in skyrocketing energy prices, insecurity and economic breakdown for Hungary since the country is 80-90 pc dependent on Russian supply. Orbán acknowledges that some EU members are in the position to receive oil supply via sea but he regularly emphasizes that Hungary is landlocked, so the country can only use those pipelines that start in Russia. However, last Friday, he went further and said that “Those who have a sea and ports are able to bring oil on tankers. If they hadn’t taken it away from us, we would also have a port.”
Croatians bristled at Orbán’s statement and summoned Hungary’s ambassador in Zagreb to explain the Prime Minister’s statement. State Secretary Tamás Menczer attempted to mitigate the issue by saying it was a misunderstanding. However, Menczer added
Orbán had referred to “historical facts”.
And there comes the problem. It seems that the Hungarian government believes history is on their side. However, Croatians disagree. Even the Croatian State Archives joined the discourse claiming that nobody could have taken away Hungary’s seashore because the country had never had one – telex.hu reported. They wrote yesterday that Mr Orbán got confused about historical records.
Hungary was liberated from the Ottoman occupation by Austrian forces, but the country did not get back its independence. Instead, it became part of the Austrian Empire. Naturally, Hungarians did not accept that and led two fights for independence in the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1848-49, Hungary almost won, but the Russians intervened and crushed the revolution. It became clear that Austria was too weak alone, so confrontation was replaced with an Austrian-Hungarian (Habsburg-Hungarian) compromise in 1867.
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Hungary became an equal part of the dual monarchy. Meanwhile, Croatia received a narrow autonomy from Hungary which acknowleded its “partner nation” status. However, the Croatian political elite did not accept that.
They wanted to unify all regions populated by South Slavs and, thus, create Yugoslavia.
There was only one city that was part of Croatia once but was not under the rule of Zagreb’s regional government between 1867 and 1918: Fiume. The city and its close neighbourhood became
a “corpus separatum, a “separated body”,
a special legal and political entity different from its environment which was under the rule of the Kingdom of Hungary. Hungarian State Secretary Menczer calls that a “historical fact”, but the Croatians do not accept that.
The Croatian State Archives claims that between 1867 and 1918, Fiume (Rijeka) was not part of the Kingdom of Hungary since it was under the rule of the Rijeka Provisory because the Hungarians and Croatians could not agree on regulating the port city’s status. Hungarian king and Austrian emperor Franz Joseph accepted that in 1870 July. The Rijeka Provisory meant that the port city and its neighbourhood were under the governor’s rule, who was appointed by the king.
Telex.hu also argues that de jure, Fiume (Rijeka) was not part of the Kingdom of Hungary.
DélHír, a Hungarian media outlet operating in Serbia, argues that Orbán was right, not the Croatians. They say that Fiume did not become part of Hungary in 1867 because it was part of the Holy Crown of Hungary from 1779 on. That is when
Queen Maria Theresa issued an official document attaching Fiume to Hungary.
Francis I even issued a law in 1807 declaring that Fiume was part of Hungary. Afterwards, Habsburg emperors and queens appointed Hungarian governors in Fiume. HERE are their names.
The article asserts that Fiume (Rijeka) looks like a proper port today because of the investments Hungary financed. Although vessel traffic grew significantly in the first half of the 19th century, large-scale developments started after 1868. In an 1871 law, the Hungarian government allocated a fortune to develop the port, create modern piers and build dams. Thanks to that, one of Europe’s most modern ports was created, and trade increased almost 15 times. In 1913, the port welcomed 31, 381 ships and 1.8 million passengers. By 1881, Fiume and Budapest were connected by a railway.
DélHír says that the heyday of Fiume was under Hungarian rule.
After WWI, Italy and Yugoslavia fought for the city, and, in 1924, it became part of Italy. However, that era was the regression of the port since it could not compete with the great Italian ports. After WWII, Yugoslavia received Fiume, and now it is on the territory of Croatia.
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Staple food shortages in Hungarian Lidl supermarkets?
The Hungarian Government has recently stated that the price cap period would last until 1 July. Fear in the general public arose: customers worry that they will not be able to buy basic staple food items in their local supermarkets due to retailers buying up price-capped products. Read below for more details.
According to Portfolio, retailers have already caused significant staple food shortages in Hungarian supermarkets since they purchase price-capped items – such as sugar, vegetable oil, and chicken breasts – in large bulks. This practice consequently caused a disruption in the shipping process of such food items. One solution proposed by an insider is that supermarkets introduce a double pricing system – one that allows contractors to reclaim the 27% tax on the price-capped products, such is the case at petrol stations – but it is a complicated process that would require a lot of work.
Lidl chains in Hungary will take drastic measures against wholesalers. Soon, Lidl will not allow such customers to purchase price-capped products in their stores.
The reason why restaurants, small retailers, and confectioneries gravitate towards supermarkets is their attractive reduced prices which are considerably lower than the market prices. To prevent product shortages, retailers have only allowed regular household-quantity purchases for customers. However, non-residential customers continued to purchase cheaper food articles in supermarkets, reducing the amount they bought but increasing the frequency of their purchases.
Portfolio predicted a 20 to 30 percent price increase for the currently price-capped products once the regulations will be lifted. The fact that the price cap is still in place until the middle of summer means that certain food products remain cheaper, while the market price of such items will continue to skyrocket, creating a significant pricing difference.
This is the very reason why Lidl took the necessary actions to prevent shortages and be able to continue the distribution of basic necessities for residential customers.
Hungarian companies with innovative technologies to find new opportunities in Morocco, says minister
Trade between Hungary and Morocco jumped by 24 percent in the past year, and the growing economy of the region offers good prospects for Hungarian companies, Finance Minister Mihaly Varga said after meeting his Moroccan counterpart, Nadia Fettah Alaoui, in Morocco on Wednesday.
Trade between the two countries reached 260 million dollars last year, Varga said after the talks on the sidelines of the general assembly of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Hungarian companies with innovative technologies and products will find new opportunities in Morocco, Varga said.
Hungarian exports of electrical equipment and vehicles there is significant, the finance ministry quoted Varga as saying.
The aim is to boost ties in water management, farm and food processing technologies, energy management and property development, Varga said.
The cooperation agreement concluded between the Hungarian and Moroccan customs and tariff authorities will also contribute to the development of ties, as will the Morocco-Hungary Business Council, which is scheduled to start work in the near future, he said.
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Annual inflation in Hungary almost in double digits in April
Consumer prices in Hungary grew by an annual 9.5 percent in April, up from 8.5 percent in the previous month, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Tuesday.
Food prices rose by 15.6 percent as the price of bread and poultry both jumped by 29.5 percent and dairy products prices climbed 22.5 percent.
Prices in the category of goods that include vehicle fuel rose by 10 percent, with vehicle fuel prices up 12.7 percent.
Prices of spirits and tobacco products increased by 5 percent.
Harmonised CPI adjusted for better comparison with other European Union member states was 9.6 percent, while core inflation, which excludes volatile fuel and food prices, was 10.3 percent.
CPI calculated with a basket of goods and services used by pensioners was 9.3 percent.
Month on month, inflation was 1.6 percent.
Analysts told MTI after the data release that the price shock related to the war in Ukraine turned up April rather than March, when inflation came in lower than expected, and April’s jump came as a big surprise. Analysts now expect higher and more persistent inflation compared with their previous forecasts.
Péter Virovácz of ING Bank said the April shock came on the back of broad and growing inflationary pressures linked mainly to geopolitical events and movements on the global market. Inflation is likely to strengthen further, and the headline rate may soon enter into double digits, he said, even with price caps in place. Inflation may peak above 11 percent in the third quarter, he added.
János Nagy of Erste Bank said the April figure as “sobering”, reflecting inflationary effects of the war and the greater vulnerability of the forint. The labour market is still tight with resultant huge wage pressures. Nagy also noted the fiscal expansion in recent months and higher-than-expected oil prices.
Gergely Suppán of Magyar Bankholding said inflation could easily reach 14-15 percent without the government-mandated price caps. Magyar Bankholding has raised its inflation forecast to approaching 9 percent for the full year, though inflation may be even higher due to raw materials shortages and other global squeezes, he said.
Hungary’s central bank (NBH) said in a monthly analysis after the data release that the increase in headline inflation was mainly driven by higher prices for core inflation items, but acknowledged that vehicle fuel prices contributed 1.4 percentage point to CPI.
The NBH’s measure of core inflation excluding indirect tax effects — a bellwether of underlying inflation — rose to 10.3 percent in April from 9.1 percent in the previous month.
The central bank’s indicator for demand-sensitive inflation, which excludes processed foods from core inflation, increased to 8.8 percent from 7.9 percent.
The NBH said the indicators measuring households’ inflation expectations “showed unusually high volatility”, rising in April and standing over the central bank target range.
Hungary and Uzbekistan launch cooperation programmes in nuclear energy, water management, agriculture
Hungary and Uzbekistan will launch large-scale cooperation programmes in the fields of nuclear energy, water management, agriculture and border control, creating opportunities for Hungarian companies in that rapidly developing Central Asian nation, Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs and trade, said in Tashkent on Wednesday.
Uzbekistan has launched ambitious development projects in areas with cutting-edge Hungarian technologies in place, the foreign ministry quoted Szijjártó as saying at a press conference after the seventh session of the two countries’ inter-governmental committee for economic cooperation.
Hungary is set to contribute cooling technology for a new nuclear power plant in the framework of a 300-400 million euro project, as well as help train Uzbek nuclear experts, he said.
Hungary has agreed to grant scholarships to 170 Uzbek university and college students, up from one hundred thus far, the minister said.
Nuclear energy has a key role to play in Hungary’s secure energy supply, and determining the energy mix is a national competence, Szijjártó said, noting the European Union had consistently declared nuclear energy’s full exemption from sanctions on Russia.
Referring to the Afghan border, the minister said:
“Europe has a vital interest in preventing further waves of migration that could promote the spread of terrorism and extremist ideologies.”
On this score, he said
the European Union should double the amount earmarked for border defence efforts in Central Asia.
Concerning water management and agriculture, the minister noted that Turkic Council member states have agreed to establish an institute tasked with preventing drought.
Bilateral trade exceeded 110 million dollars last year and increased by 48 percent his year, Szijjártó said, adding that
Hungary’s Eximbank had opened a 105 million euro credit line to help finance bilateral business cooperation.
The two sides have signed a supplementary protocol on the Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship programme and a declaration of intent on tourism cooperation.
Szijjártó was scheduled to meet his Uzbek counterpart, the deputy prime minister for investments and external economic relations, and the ministers of health, innovative development, higher and secondary education, tourism and cultural heritage later in the day.
Hungary March retail sales up 16.2 pc yr/yr
Retail sales in March grew by an annual 16.2 percent from a low base, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Wednesday.
Calendar-year data also showed 16.2 percent growth.
Food sales increased by 0.2 percent, non-food sales by 29.7 percent, while vehicle fuel sales jumped by 51.4 percent.
Commenting on the data, analysts said that retail sails had grown on the back of bonuses and tax refunds paid in February, fuel tourism induced by the government price cap, the low base, and inflation expectations.
Gergely Suppán of Magyar Bankholding said retail turnover exceeded expectations in March. One-off government measures such as the PIT refund for families raising children, the 13th month pension, and allowances for service members boosted already robust wage growth, which was around 13 percent, he said. Retail sales grew on the back of price caps on fuel and basic foods near the border, where it boosted shopping tourism, he said. In view of those tendencies, Bankholding expects retail growth to be above 10 percent this year, he said.
Péter Virovácz of ING Bank said the two-digit jump in retail sales came after a rise of 7.3 growth in 2021, indicating that, besides the low pandemic-related base, other factors such as fuel tourism, aid to and consumption by Ukrainian refugees, and inflation expectations may have played a role. He said the March data were likely indicative of a blip rather than structural change, though growth at this level was “definitely unsustainable” and would raise first-quarter GDP greatly, he said.