Market Briefing :Hungary

ECONOMIC SITUATION

Hungary is a landlocked country in the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and the Ukraine, with Budapest as it’s capital. Hungary has been a member state of the European Union since 1 May 2004 and as one of the newest member countries of the European Union, continues to demonstrate strong economic growth.

The AUDI production line in factory at Gy’r	The Stock Exchange building in Budapest	Exhibition show

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

Electronics Industry
The Hungarian electronics industry has a long history with a lot of electronics corporations establishing their factories in Szekesfehervar which has made its name as the bastion of the electronics industry. The industry is also the best field of investment for overseas corporations, such as Flextronics, IBM, Jabil, Circuit Inc., Nokia, Philips, Siemens and Sony to name a few. These corporations set up subsidiaries in Hungary and profited from the highly efficient production lines with the aim of developing their export totals.

Construction Industry
Hungary has received a large economic subsidy from the European Union since it become a member. To date , this amount has reached HUF8000 billion (US$ 40 billion), half of which is used to develop the construction industry. To allow Hungary to catch up with the rest of the European Union, Hungary government’s national development policy for 2007 –2013 was adopted by E.U a short time ago. This provides Hungary with development funds totalling EUR 22.4 billion however, the subsidy must be used in conjunction with the government capital. In the next five years, the Hungarian government will invest a great deal in infrastructure projects, thus assisting the construction industry to reach it full potential.

Retail Industry
The Hungarian retail market has changed a lot. Hypermarkets and shopping centres have shown the largest development allowing the retail industry to record the biggest growth rate. Overseas investors have helped improve the style of management, shopping habits hardware and software facilities. Of the 200 foreign owned chains over 100 are hypermarkets and nearly 100 huge shopping centres. Consumers purchase 50% of their retail requirements and 65% of their food from the foreign owned premises, for example, Tesco, Cora and Auchan. This situation has caused problems for the small local retailers, which accounts for 23% of the industry. Probably in countryside, this kind of small retailer will continue to operate as customers are used to using them, while it is more likely that the government will provide economic support to enable the small retail businesses to expand and develop.

MAJOR WEBSITE RECOMMENDATION:

• THE MINISTRY OF ECONOMY AND TRANSPORT WEBSITE
  http://en.gkm.gov.hu/
  The website of the Ministry of Economy and Transport of the Republic of Hungary provides the latest information on commercial policies, especially those relating to taxation, enterprises, transportation and foreign investment.
• THE REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY GOVERNMENT WEBSITE
  http://www.magyarorszag.hu
  The Republic of Hungary Government Website is a formal website that publishes reliable information about the country policies, laws, government decisions and social economic development in Hungary.
• HUNGARIAN INVESTMENT AND TRADE DEVELOPMENT AGENCY WEBSITE
  http://www.itdh.com
  As the primary investment and trade agency of the government, Hungarian Investment and Trade Development Agency produces and provides up-to-date information on the investment situation and environment in Hungary as well as statistics and service.

Source: CIA- The World Fact Book- Poland,
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/hu.html

Source: World Economic Factbook 2006/2007, CIA- The World Fact Book- Hungary Main Exports – commodities: machinery and equipment, other manufactures, food products, raw materials, fuels and electricity
Main Imports – commodities: Machinery and equipment, other manufactures, fuels and electricity, food products, and raw materials

Note 1 : Exports = Domestic Exports + Re-exports
Note 2 : From May 2000, data on Transit is only available up to the 4th digit of NCEM/HS

SOURCE:

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China
  http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/chn/
• The Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China
  http://www.mofcom.gov.cn/
• The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Hungary
  http://www.chinaembassy.hu/chn
• The Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s office of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Hungary
  http://hu.mofcom.gov.cn/index.shtml
• Macao Statistics and Census Service
  http://www.dsec.gov.mo/c_index.html
• Macao Economic Services
  http://www.economia.gov.mo/
• The Economist Intelligence Unit
  http://www.ipim.gov.mo/pt-pt/
• The Ministry of Economy and Transport Website
  http://en.gkm.gov.hu/
• The Republic of Hungary Government Website
  http://www.magyarorszag.hu
• Hungarian Investment and Trade Development Agency Website
  http://www.itdh.com
• The World Factbook
  http://www.cia.gov
• World Economic Factbook 2006/2007
• European Commission
  http://ec.europa.eu
• hungexpo
  http://www.hungexpo.com

SOURCE:

• European Commission
  http://ec.europa.eu/enlargement/archives/enlargement_process/past_enlargements/eu10/pictures/
  hungary_en.htm
• hungexpo
  http://www.hungexpo.com/pressInfo.php?id=128&lc=hu