The Hungarian economy could enter a new “golden age” due to its sound structure and growth is based on strong fundamentals, economic commentator Csaba Szajlai said on national television M1’s news program on Sunday.
Szajlai, the deputy editor of the weekly Figyelő, said that compared with a four-percent annual economic growth target set out in the country’s European Union convergence program, growth in both 2018 and 2019 was five percent, consistently surpassing foreign analysts’ and research institutes’ expectations.
He said Hungary has now seven years of uninterrupted economic growth behind it, which has not happened since 1990.
“If the country can settle into an economic growth rate of around four percent per year and keep it up for a decade, that would qualify as a true golden age,” Szajlai said.
If the country can settle into an economic growth rate of around four percent per year and keep it up for a decade, that would qualify as a true golden age.
He pointed out that due to minimal growth in the county’s main western European markets, expansion may slow down in the next years. Currently, Hungary is in a much better position than it was a decade ago when the current ruling conservative government came into power.
Szajlai believes Hungary has very strong economic fundamentals, saying the country’s current account and foreign trade balance are very healthy, as is the public deficit that is getting lower every year.
In addition, the government is currently working on its second economic incentives program that should keep the country’s growth at least two percent above the average of the European Union.
The main driving forces of Hungarian economic growth are the export-oriented car industry, a strong services sector, a high rate of foreign investment, and construction, which has seen two-digit growth in the past two years.
Strong domestic consumption, fueled by rising wages in both the private and the public sector, has also delivered robust growth.
Additionally, the monetary policy of the Hungaran Central BANk (MNB) is in tune with the government’s economic and fiscal policy, lending further credibility to Hungary’s strong economy.
Title image: Roll of forint notes (illustration)
