Bread and meat are becoming the new luxury items in Hungary

The war in Ukraine has ripple effects all around the world. Because of it, in Hungary, bread and meat became luxury items that only a few can afford. Hungarians were not in a good situation even before the war, but now everything is much worse. Inflation is soaring, the currency is devaluing and there are even shortages in many cases. Nobody knows when this will all come to an end.

In the past year, the price of food had risen by 35.2 percent on average. Last year, this number was only 3 percent. The price of pork has increased by 22.4 percent, poultry by 42.9 percent and beef by 46.6 percent. These are the price increases for non-preprepared meat items. Processed meat items such as sausages have increased by 25.1 percent, salami and ham by 24.5 percent.

But the list goes on and Világgazdaság.hu has collected a list from the inflation report. The price of eggs increased by 53.7, butter by 61.2, bread by 76.2, pasta by 60.2, sweet pastry by 42 and fruit by 18.1 percent. Eating out or during work also became significantly more expensive. The inflation can also be felt in other non-essential items too such as alcoholic beverages, tobacco, clothes, cars, etc.

Read also: Official: in Hungary edges over 20.1 pc, the highest in 20 years

Christmas might be even worse

According to analysts, this will be the time of the year when inflation reaches its peak of around 21 percent. By that point, the average annual inflation rate will be 14 percent. But we should not forget that a decreasing inflation rate does not equate to a decrease in prices. The inflation rate is essentially a ratio and as the base numbers go up, the difference between the new and old prices will be lower. So price hikes can be expected for a lot longer even if such high inflation rates might not occur.

Furthermore, energy prices increased by 62.1 percent. This average is made up of two components: natural gas and electricity. The price of natural gas has risen by a staggering 221 percent which is almost incomprehensible. The problem is that even the price of alternatives such as firewood has also increased by 43.8 percent.

Due to the uncertainty in the current geopolitical realm, it is impossible to make predictions. No one knows when or how this situation will end, but even the most optimistic analysts predict that the effects will be felt in 2024 as well.