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Finance Minister: Hungary records highest ever quarterly growth

Hungary’s economic performance has surpassed its pre-pandemic level, meaning that the country’s economic recovery is one of the fastest in the EU.

Mihály Varga, Minister of Finance, said Hungary's GDP grew by 17.9 percent in the second quarter compared to a year earlier, which is the highest quarterly growth ever recorded.

The minister added that Hungary’s economic performance has surpassed its pre-pandemic level, meaning that the country’s economic recovery is one of the fastest in the EU. The successful reboot is indicated by the fact that Hungarian GDP has been able to grow quarter-on-quarter as well, with growth of 2.7 percent in Q2 compared to Q1 of 2021, he said.

Minister Varga stressed that although detailed data is not yet available, it is already clear that growth covers a wide range of economic sectors. He cited industrial production, construction and retail sales as examples with growth of 22, 28 and 6 percent in June, respectively, adding that in tourism, one and a half times more guest nights have been spent.

The minister also pointed out that growth has been significantly supported by the government's economic protection and recovery measures, which together will contribute 8.4 percentage points to the economy's performance this year, mitigating the effects of the crisis brought about by the pandemic.

The results of the supportive fiscal policy have paid off, and the aim is to maintain the Hungarian economy's lead over the EU, thus the economic policy based on tax cuts, job creation, investment incentives and support for families will continue.