Macroeconomic data is providing evidence that the Hungarian government’s crisis management strategy to offset the damages of the coronavirus pandemic is working, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said.
“There was a sharp difference between the different government strategies, and now we can take stock. It shows that all those who put up with the fact that there would be mass unemployment anyway and could not or did not want to prevent factory closures have badly failed,” he said, adding that “on the other hand, the measures of the Hungarian government, which focused on preventing mass unemployment and supporting the expansion of companies’ capacity, proved to be absolutely successful.”
In his speech, he called it “unique” that over the past year and a half, non-financial and direct economic reasons have triggered an “amazing” crisis. He pointed out that more than 110 million jobs were lost globally and investment fell by 40 percent. However, Hungary managed to buck this trend and managed to increase its employment rate.
“The measures of the Hungarian government, which focused on preventing mass unemployment and supporting the expansion of companies’ capacity, proved to be absolutely successful,” Szijjártó said.
“It is not a purely political statement, but facts prove that the Hungarian government’s strategy aimed at mitigating the economic effects of the coronavirus epidemic was successful,” he added.
Szijjártó was speaking at the announcement of a brownfield investment of Hungarian food processing company Pick Szeged Zrt. The state will provide 10.6 billion forints (€29.4 million) in support for the development of the new plant, which also involves the installation of solar panels, amounting to almost 40 billion forints, which contributes to the preservation of 1,900 jobs.
The project is meant to increase the sales volume of specialty salami by about 25 percent by 2030. Pick is famous for its salami coated with white mold, a penicillin-producing mold that occurs naturally during the salami’s maturation and protects the product from “bad” mold and bacteria.
