Kategória: PORTFOLIO.HU – Online Financial Journal
Budapest commercial property rents unchanged in H1
The typical rent for commercial properties in Budapest remained unchanged in most segments in the first half of 2018 from the second half of 2017,…
Morgan Stanley warns Hungary inflation could be more than 4% in 2019
Financial analysts at London-based Morgan Stanley forecast inflation in Hungary to rise above 4% year-on-year for a short period next year due to high global…
Hungary FinMin submits 2019 tax package
The Finance Ministry on Friday submitted a tax bill to Parliament, with several new items added to the changes already known, such as a slight…
Hungary small cap signs global distributon deal with Asura
OTT-ONE, traded on the Budapest Stock Exchange, yesterday announced that it has signed an exclusive worldwide distribution deal with UK-based Asura Vision Ltd. for the…
Inflation slows Hungary real wage growth in August
Although salaries in the private sector continue to grow dynamically in Hungary, the growth of real wages has slowed as inflation climbed to a 5.5-year…
OTP to buy Société Générale Srbija, newspaper reports
OTP Bank will buy the Serbian unit of Société Générale, Serbian daily Novosti reported on Thursday. The newspaper cited unofficial sources claiming that OTP, which…
U.S. rate hike top concern, Hungary doing well – Commerzbank chief economist
Dr Marco Wagner, senior economist with Germany’s Commerzbank, will hold the keynote speech at Portfolio’s Business and Finance conference in November, where the award for…
EBRD sees no problem with Hungary axing home savings scheme
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) does not see Hungary’s sudden abandonment of its home savings scheme (LTP or the Building Society Fund…
Yield on Hungary's 12-month T-bill lowest since May
Only HUF 21 bn worth of 12-month discount Treasury Bills were sold at the Government Debt Management Agency’s (ÁKK) biweekly auction on Thursday out of…
Hungary small caps announce merger plans
The board of directors of exchange-listed Opus Global voted to begin preparations for a merger with Konzum, also traded on the Budapest Stock Exchange, Opus…
Cold winter could cause trouble in Hungary's gas supply
Extreme cold weather could pose a risk to the security of natural gas supply, the Hungarian Energy and Public Utility Regulatory Authority (MEKH) said in…
Hungary investment funds hit wall in September
The combined assets managed by Hungarian investment funds grew to more than HUF 6,300 billion in September, but all is not rosy: only property funds…
EU records dramatic drop in new passenger car registrations
The number of new passenger car registrations declined by a quarter in annual terms in the European Union in September 2018 due to the introduction…
Hungary could launch new family housing allowance scheme already in 2018
Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, has held a press conference for journalists on Wednesday, and shared several key pieces of information…
This could be really big: Hungary sets eye on money kept under mattresses
The Hungarian state would have the means to further incentivise households to keep buying government securities. The question is whether it would be worth paying…
Hungary's competitiveness on maps!
Compared to the world average, Hungary’s competitiveness is not bad, but it is definitely not a great sight when compared to other European Union member…
Hungary Mol lowers fuel prices afrer major hike
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol has lowered the wholesale list price of 95-octane gasoline by 7 forints per litre and the price of diesel…
Hungary c.bank publishes rationale for rate decision
The Monetary Council of the Hungarian central bank (MNB) said sentiment in international financial markets has deteriorated in the period since the Council’s previous interest…
Hungary still gets paid to borrow from the market
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has allotted 3-month discount Treasury Bills at its weekly auction on Tuesday, and investors were once again willing to…
Hungarian state could enter pension savings market
Hungary has set record in Europe with its high stock of government securities held by households, Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) Chief Executive Officer György…
Hungary cenbank announces tenfold increase in gold reserves
The Monetary Council of the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) has decided to raise the amount of the bank’s reserves kept in gold by tenfold…
Hungary Duna House warns of revenue loss over gov't squashing LTP
If Hungary does away with state grants in the home savings scheme (LTP), it could have a negative impact on the consolidated results of Duna…
Hungary cenbank fired its weapons, it's time to reload them
Analysts polled by Portfolio agree that the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) will not deliver any surprise at is policy meeting on Tuesday, either by…
Hungary cenbank fires weapons, it's time to reload them
Analysts polled by Portfolio agree that the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) will not deliver any surprise at is policy meeting on Tuesday, either by…
Hungary central bank to make “extraordinary announcement” on Tuesday
The National Bank of Hungary (MNB) has called a press conference for 10 A.M. on Tuesday. The invitation says: “Extraordinary Announcement – The Investment Policy…
Hungary to nix state grants in building society funds
Hungary plans to do away with state grants in the Building Society Fund (LTP) system, shows a bill submitted by a member of the ruling…
Hungary construction sector boom confuses statistics too
The volume of Hungary’s construction output grew by 1.9% month on month in August. This was the fifth consecutive month when the output expanded which…
Can Hungary's central bank still cause a surprise?
The central bank’s upcoming policy meeting is clearly the biggest event in Hungary this week. Elsewhere in the world, GDP data are in the pipeline,…
Chinese giant Alipay debuts in Hungary
UniCredit Bank Hungary and Alipay have signed an agreement, the first in the country, making China’s most widespread mobile payment method available to Chinese visitors…
Hungary needs single-digit personal income tax – Matolcsy
Hungary needs to be a winner in the following years and for that it has to maintain economic upturn, and also strengthen the country’s competitiveness…
Hungary's Orbán no longer has a place in the EPP – Juncker
Viktor Orbán has no place in the European People’s Party (EPP) any longer, stated Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission told French daily newspaper…
Minister reveals size of subsidy for Hungary's new BMW plant
The Hungarian government will subsidise an investment by German carmaker BMW with over 12.3 billion forints and it will pay off royally, the country’s Minister…
Hungary Magyar Telekom announces departure of a Deputy CEO
Magyar Telekom, Hungary’s leading telecommunications group, has announced on Friday that its Chief Legal and Corporate Affairs Officer will leave the company with mutual agreement…
Putin and Orbán have plans to further expand relations in various areas
Russia and Hungary have amassed an impressive potential for cooperation, said Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, after 23 newly-arrived ambassadors presented their credentials to him…
Automotive companies in Hungary flick the switches back on
As it was expected, Hungary’s industry improved its performance substantially in August. The volume of industrial production grew by 3.8% month on month in August,…
EU drive to cap VAT would prevent Hungary from lowering taxes
Part of the coverage of tax reductions in Hungary would be taken away by the proposal recently adopted by the European Parliament to maximise the…
Map shows dramatic air pollution in Hungary
Air pollution is currently the greatest risk to health in the European Union therefore it is one of, if not the main reason for premature…
Even if EU funds dry up, Hungary's debt manager has large enough buffer
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has a buffer of over 700 billion forints in case EU funds do not get transferred from Brussels this…
Ministry works out ways to separate Hungary's private and public health care
We have worked out the first proposals aimed at separating private and public health care services, the Minister for Human Capacities told pro-government daily Magyar…
Gas supply: Hungary to ink solidariy deals with neighbours
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has mandated the Minister for Innovation and Technology to sign agreements on solidarity mechanisms of bilateral natural gas supply. According…
Prologis has developments in four CEE countries at once
Prologis currently has nine logistics facilities under construction in Central and Eastern Europe totalling around 200,000 square meters of space. Over the next six months,…
Hungary Eximbank inks co-operation deal with Turkish counterpart
Hungary’s Export-Import Bank (Eximbank) has signed a co-operation agreement with Turkey’s Türk Eximbank for the development of economic relations between the two countries, Eximbank… Powered…
Wizz Air: major changes made to baggage policy
Hungary-based no-frills airline Wizz Air has introduced a 10-kilogram checked-in bag and it is once again changing its carry-on bag policy, the carrier announced on…
Interest rate hike works, Hungarian households get hooked on gov't securities again
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) recorded a 70% quarter-on-quarter increase in government security sales as a result of a 50-basis-point interest rate hike at…
E-payment of pensions will not be mandatory in Hungary – Finance Ministry
Hungary’s State Treasury has saved nearly 2 billion forints over the last few years on the increasing number of people asking their pensions and family…
Hungary's Mol raises price of diesel sharply
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol has raised the wholesale list price of diesel by 8 forints per litre on Wednesday, while it kept the…
Single-digit personal income tax rate untimely to consider – FinMin
About 650 billion forints should be surrendered from the budget in order to lower the current 15% personal income tax rate to a single-digit figure,…
Cenbank chief also urges Hungarians to buy government bonds
The reduction of the base rate by 610 basis points between August 2012 and the end of 2017 brought the state budget 1.6 trillion forints…
Hungarian railway MÁV to embark on EUR 11 million IT development project
State-owned railway company MÁV has announced a 3.6 billion forint (EUR 11 mn) IT investment project that will be completed in June 2020. András Csépke,…
INSTANT VIEW – Hungary's inflation hits over 5.5-year high
Hungary’s inflation accelerated to 3.6% year on year in September, beating market expectations (3.5% consensus in a Portfolio poll), reaching a nearly six-year peak. Core…
Hungary debt manager sells short bills at negative yield again
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has allotted 3-month discount Treasury Bills with a negative average yield on Tuesday. The issuer has sold slightly more…
Hungary starts cutting red tap, thousands could lose their job
9,000 to 10,000 people might lose their job in Hungary’s state administration, 24.hu reported on Tuesday. The ministries and government support institutions are preparing 20%…
Deterioration of Hungary's foreign trade balance stops
After a massive surplus in June 2018, Hungary’s foreign trade balance showed a smaller 362 million euro surplus in July. This surplus, though, is still…
Hungary's inflation accelerates to 3.6% in September
Consumer prices in Hungary rose by 3.6% year on year in September, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) reported on Tuesday. This means that inflation accelerated…
Consumer prices in Hungary seen up at almost 6-year high
Hungary’s inflation accelerated to a 69-month high of 3.5% in September, according to analysts polled by Portfolio. The National Bank of Hungary (MNB) does not…
Mol to raise price of diesel again in Hungary
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol is to raise the wholesale list price of diesel by 8 forints per litre on Wednesday, while the price…
Hungary posts massive budget surplus in September
Hungary’s general government posted a 150 billion surplus in September 2018, which really stands out, but the cumulated deficit remains sizeable. The surplus in September…
Hungary posts massive surplus in September
Hungary’s general government posted a 150 billion surplus in September 2018, which really stands out, but the cumulated deficit remains sizeable. The surplus in September…
Corporate takeover appetite hits four-year low
A record wave of mergers and acquisitions could slow sharply as dealmakers get spooked by rising geopolitical concerns, according to a survey by Ernst &…
IMF to publish review of the Hungarian economy this week
No significant event or data release is in the pipeline for this week abroad, while Hungary has the latest inflation and budget figures to wait…
Hungary tops European rankings, yet it is not good news for everyone
House prices, as measured by the House Price Index, rose by 4.3% in both the euro area and the EU in the second quarter of…
Hungary declares war on plastic cutlery, straws
An amendment to Hungary’s product fee law is expected to entail a hike to the product fee of single-use plastic cups and plates, and this…
Golden years await the Hungarian economy
Takarékbank has reaffirmed its 4.6% GDP growth estimate for Hungary for 2018, citing an upturn in investment as the key reason. Yet, it has revised…
Hungary's industry back on its feet after summer “vacation”
As it was expected, Hungary’s industry really stepped up its game in August; the production volume increased by 3.8% month on month and the 12-month…
Raiffeisen CEO: We will not forget what happened to us!
The bank he manages has assets greater than the assets of the entire Hungarian banking sector or the annual GDP of Hungary. He commutes to…
Hungarian fund managers like OTP, Richter the most
The Budapest Stock Exchange (BSE) had quite a month in September. Local investors were spooked by trade war and the adoption of the Sargentini Report…
Erste Hungary chief baffled by KBC calling off brokerage sale
Erste Bank Hungary’s Chairman-CEO said KBC Group’s decision not to sell its Hungarian brokerage arm was incomprehensible. His bank would have been happy to buy…
EIB to lend Hungary 400 million euros on four projects
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is committing 400 million euros to cohesion policy projects in Hungary, and has signed two new deals under the Junker…
CEE region is in an exceptional sitution, London-based economists say
The Central and Eastern European region currently enjoys a special status, and it boasts the best positions among emerging countries, analysts agreed at Portfolio’s Budapest…
Yield on Hungary's 12-month T-bill drops at auction
The average yield on Hungary’s 12-month discount Treasury Bill has dropped at the Government Debt Management Agency’s (ÁKK) biweekly auction on Thursday. The ÁKK has…
Hungary has no panacea, but buffers could help – FinMin
Hungary has no panacea for achieving competitive growth, but there are areas where meticulous work can yield results, Finance Minister Mihály Varga told Portfolio’s Budapest…
Home loans: new all-time record set in Hungary
Hungarians have never taken out as much home loans as in 2018. The value of new home loan contracts in the first eight months of…
Home loans: all-time record broken in Hungary
Hungarians have never taken out as much home loans as in 2018. The value of new home loan contracts in the first eight months of…
Aldi adds new stores to Hungarian network
Discount retail chain Aldi is expanding its network in Hungary further. It is adding five new stores and thus creating 100 new jobs, the company…
KBC is not selling its Hungarian brokerage arm after all – paper
KBC Group has changed its mind about selling the clientele of KBC Securities Hungary and instead it will have it integrated into K&H Bank, business…
Hungary does not have to give up top VAT rate just yet
A vote by the European Parliament to maximise the rate of value-added tax in the European Union at 25% will be considered by the European…
EU to force Hungary to lower VAT rate
MEPs on Wednesday backed the bulk of the European Commission’s proposed reform of the VAT system, while proposing some adjustments, such as to set a…
Hike to VAT exemption cap to benefit 600,000 small Hungarian businesses
European Union Finance Minister have decided on Tuesday to endorse a request by the Hungarian government that could ensure a significant tax reduction and simplification…
Price of gasoline, diesel to be raised to 4-year high in Hungary
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol is to raise the wholesale list price of 95-octane gasoline by 6 forints per litre and the price of…
Planned tax relief could leave millions in Hungarian mothers' pockets
The Hungarian government is contemplating a major tax relief, according to the latest leaked information. It reportedly plans to exempt women with at least three…
Hungary forint turns back from 1.5-month high versus euro
As tensions about Italy’s budget have eased, Hungary’s forint strengthened against the euro on Wednesday morning, and breached two key technical barriers, although it did…
Hungarian MPs nod on law to check foreign investments
On Tuesday, Hungarian MPs adopted a bill on the “control of foreign investments detrimental to the security interests of Hungary.” As of January 2019, it…
Hungary, Croatia turn to Commission over gas price fix
The governments of Hungary and Croatia are turning to the European Commission over the price of natural gas transmission via the Hungarian-Croatian interconnector. The physical…
Investors willing to pay Hungary to give it credit
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has once again sold short-maturity Treasury Bills at negative yields on Tuesday, after it seriously cut back its offer…
You thought consumption in Hungary is booming? Think again!
We have spotted a captivating chart in an analysis recently published by Morgan Stanley. It shows household consumption in Central and Eastern Europe. While we…
Hungary to pay 18,000 forint pension premium this year – state secretary
The Hungarian government is going to pay a larger ‘premium’ to pensioners this year than in 2017, likely 18,000 forints, a government official told public…
Hungary debt target attainable despite weak forint – ÁKK chief
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has large enough buffers to cover the budget deficit accumulated due to lagging EU fund payments, CEO György Barcza…
Hungary's economic growth larger than expected
Hungary’s gross domestic production was 0.1% higher both in the first and second quarters of 2018 than what the Central Statistical Office (KSH) made account…
VAT revenues explode in Hungary
Hungary’s general government sector had a surplus of 22.6 billion forints, 0.2% of gross domestic product, in the second quarter of 2018. The last time…
Hungarian women with three children may be granted PIT exemption for life
The Hungarian government is to hold another national consultation in October, with the focus on demographics, pro-government daily Magyar Idők reported on Tuesday. The paper…
Find out how many homes were sold in Hungary so far in 2018!
12,787 homes were sold in Hungary in September 2018, according to the latest estimate of real estate agency holding Duna House. The number of real…
Tens of thousands of fostered workers could take jobs in business sector
As many as 40,000 people previously employed in public works have already found jobs in Hungary’s business sector, and there could be 30,000 to 50,000…
Hungarian PM Orbán suggests larger pension top-up than last year
The Hungarian government will pay a ‘pension premium’ this year as well, and in all likelihood it is going to be larger than last time,…
Hungary financing capacity drops to six-year low
According to financial accounts data, net lending of Hungary’s general government amounted to -3.4% in the four quarters to Q2 2018, which is over the…
Erste Hungary posts handsome profit in first half
Erste Bank Hungary posted 22.9 billion forint after-tax profit in the first half of 2018, which marks a 27% year-on-year decline but is still a…
Manufacturing losing spirit in Hungary
Hungary’s manufacturing purchasing manager index (PMI) dropped significantly in September form a high level in August, but it remains well over the 50-point mark, signalling…
Fresh debt figure, cenbank policy rationale on the Hungarian menu
After central bank policy meetings, calmer times are ahead for markets this week, although the threat of a trade war could take centre stage any…
Gov't security, stock purchases of Hungarian households could be boosted
Financial savings of Hungarian households contributes to economic growth through various channels, said central bank (MNB) Deputy Governor Márton Nagy told a conference organised by…
Commission nods on Hungary's state aid to BorsodChem
The European Commission has found Hungary’s 45 million euro investment aid to chemical company BorsodChem Zrt to be in line with EU State aid rules,…
Hungarian gov't has no plans for minimum wage hike yet – paper
The Hungarian government has still not taken a stance on how much it would raise the minimum wage and the wage minimum for skilled workers,…
Ryanair cancels hundreds of flights, easyJet benefits
Pilots at no-frills carrier Ryanair are on strike again on Friday, due to which more than 200 flights were cancelled, affecting tens of thousands of…
Hungary to top up pensions in November, PM Orbán confirms
Hungary will pay an extra to pensioners, a so-called ‘premium’, this year as well, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has confirmed on Friday in an interview…
Hungarian PM Orbán meets Chairman of Tata Sons
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of the Indian Tata Group, had talks about the development of the Hungarian economy and the…
Hungary automotive industry on a roll, FinMin throws in magic number
For the first time in the history of the Hungarian economy, production of the local automotive sector will exceed 10,000 billion forints next year, Minister…
New pasta plant starts operation in Hungary
Pasta maker Gyermelyi Zrt. has inaugurated its new plant built with a 7.2 billion forint (EUR 22.25 mn) investment with HUF 2.4 bn state subsidy….
Shortage of civil engineers seen becoming a bigger issue in Hungary
Several thousand civil engineers are missing from the Hungarian market, while construction output is growing at a fast pace. According to enrolment statistics, the interest…
Lukoil takes over Mol petrol stations in Hungary
Normbenz Hungary Ltd., the operator of Lukoil petrol stations in the country, is taking over two pumps from oil and gas group Mol. Normbenz currently…
Hungary's auction of 15-yr bond flops, shorter papers sell well
Hungary’s Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) has allotted 67 billion worth of government bonds at its biweekly auctions on Thursday instead of the planned HUF…
Hungary debt manager may contemplate FX bond buyback
The buyback of USD bonds took place in parallel with the Eurobond issuance last year, but after the latest Eurobond issuance Hungary had earlier this…
Hungary would raise minimum wage to HUF 150,000 in 2019 – paper
Hungary will raise the minimum wage to 150,000 forints and the wage minimum for skilled labour to HUF 202,000 in 2019, business daily Világgazdaság reported…
Budapest finishes higher in top global destinations ranking
Bangkok, London and Paris are the top travel destinations in the world, according to Mastercard’s Global Destination Cities Index, which puts Hungary to the 32nd…
Hungary Mol to raise price of diesel on Friday
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol is to raise the wholesale list price of diesel by by 3 forints per litre on Friday, while it…
Hungary's Sziget could have posted record profit in 2018 – CEO
Following a decline last year, festival organiser Sziget Zrt. could post profit this year that matches the record reached in 2016, CEO Tamás Kádár told…
Hungary OTP chief's Singapore-based fund cannot stop buying OTP shares
OTP Chairman-CEO Sándor Csányi’s Singapore-based fund keeps on buying OTP shares. The last transaction by Sertorius Global Opportunities Fund was a package of 5,000 OTP…
New Hungarian gas trading company is born
Balázs Kertész, who has become known as the “financial right-hand man” of Antal Rogán, former propaganda minister for Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and currently minister…
Russian-Hungarian consortium wins mammoth rail deal in Egypt
The Egyptian National Railways (ENR) has signed a five-year supply contract with Russian-Hungarian consortium Transmashholding-Hungary Ltd. covering the deliveries of 1,300 passenger cars. The… Powered…
Willingness to have children shows no improvement at all in Hungary
In July 2018, The number of live births in Hungary was nearly the same and that of deceases was 3.6% higher than in the same…
Hungary issues eurobond, FinMin comments
Hungary has issued one billion euro worth of 7-year eurobond at a yield of 1.25%, Finance Minister Mihály Varga announced late on Tuesday. The bond’s…
Open Society turns to human rights court over Hungary's 'Stop Soros' law
The Open Society Foundations are calling on Europe’s highest human rights court to act against Hungary over its so-called Stop Soros laws, which “criminalize and…
Mol Limo expands fleet by locally produced Mercedes-Benz models
Hungarian oil and gas group Mol is adding Mercedes models to its car sharing fleet in Budapest. The 50 Mercedes-Benz A-Class models rolled out by…