The Hungarian economy “is on a successful path” and at the “highest since the fall of communism”, Mihály Varga, minister of Economy, has said.
The minister's remarks came in light of the Central Statistical Office (KSH) revelation that the volume of investments in Hungary rose by an annual 34.1 percent in the first quarter of 2017.
KSH noted that growth was strong in nearly all sectors. In addition to capacity expansion projects, the actual realization of projects launched under the 2014-2020 EU funding cycle also gathered momentum.
Investments in manufacturing, such as developments at Apollo Tyres, Mercedes and Samsung, have seen “very serious growth," Minister Varga said.
“If investment growth is sustained, even if not at such a high pace, the investment rate will also grow, which in turn boosts job creation and helps secure the targeted economic growth rate of 4 percent in 2017 and 2018,” he said.
Meanwhile, MTI reported that investment growth “exceeded expectations” in the first quarter of this year.
Gergely Suppán of Takarékbank said that the scale of growth was due to an accelerating investment rate coupled with base effects.
Dávid Németh of K and H Bank said that the growth, although significant, still trailed 2015 data. Investments are catching up after a setback last year, when investment volume fell by 20 percent, he said.