Hungary

Hungary

The light green area is the rest of the European Union

Hungary was the 55th largest economy in the world by nominal GDP in 2018. GDP per capita is $15,939. It is a small open economy with trade at 168 percent of GDP in 2018. It is ranked 38th in the World Bank's Human Capital Index and 15th in terms of Economic Complexity. It is a member of the EU and OECD. Services was the largest economic sector in 2018 (54 percent of GDP), followed by manufacturing (19 percent), and agriculture (3.6 percent). In 2017, the largest export sectors were services (18.85 percent), machinery (18 percent), electronics (16 percent), vehicles (14.2 percent), and chemicals (11.7 percent). The largest individual exports were ICT services (9.5 percent), cars (8 percent), car parts (4.8 percent), transport services (4.7 percent), and travel and tourism (4.4 percent). Its largest export partners were Germany (26 percent) and Romania (5.2 percent). The largest goods imports were car parts (5.3 percent), and cars (4.12 percent). Hungary began to industrialise within the Austro-Hungarian empire from the 1890s as a developing bourgeois class began investing but industry remained relatively small prior to World War Two. Post war, the economy grew rapidly due to reconstruction and increased industrialisation, but collectivisation had a negative impact on agriculture. Following the 1956 uprising, economic control was lightened and the economic responded with faster growth but by the late 1970s the economy was stagnating, and the government borrowed heavily to maintain spending. Following the fall of communism, Hungary experienced a difficult transition with a three-year recession, high inflation, and rising unemployment. A stronger commitment to reforms from 1995 led to a recovery and strong economic growth. The reforms included increased privatisations and better fiscal management. Hungary was hit hard by the global financial crisis of 2008-09 as export demand and domestic consumption fell. Growth has recovered in recent years due to increased EU funding, increased exports to the EU, and a rebound in household consumption.

Its population in 2018 was 9,688,847 [1]

In 2015, 15.56% of its total energy
consumption was renewable [2]

In 2021, its GDP grew by 7.10% [2]

In 2021 it had a negative Current
Account Balance of US$bn 1.75 [3]

Its unemployment rate in 2021 was 4.07% [3]

Its Expenditure on R&D (as a percentage of
GDP) in 2020 was 1.61% [2]

A Big Mac will set you back the
local equivalent of US$3.03 [4]



What free trade areas or economic unions is it a member of?

Member of the European Union (EU) since 01/05/2004

Other members:

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden


What trade deals are there between European Union and other countries and economic unions?

EU - Andorra Customs Union (from 01/01/1991)

European Single Market (SM) (from 01/01/1993)

EU - Sri-Lanka Co-operation and Partnership Agreement (from 01/04/1995)

EU - Türkiye Customs Union (from 31/12/1995)

EU - Faroe Islands Agreement (from 01/01/1997)

EU - Palestinian Authority Interim Association Agreement (from 01/07/1997)

EU - Tunisia Association Agreement (from 01/03/1998)

EU - Armenia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (from 09/09/1999)

EU - Morocco Association Agreement (from 01/03/2000)

EU - Israel Association Agreement (from 01/06/2000)

EU - Mexico Global Agreement (from 01/10/2000)

EU - San Marino Customs Union (from 01/04/2002)

EU - Jordan Association Agreement (from 01/05/2002)

EU - North Macedonia Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/04/2004)

EU - Pakistan Co-operation agreement (from 29/04/2004)

EU - Egypt Association Agreement (from 01/06/2004)

EU - Chile Association Agreement and Additional Protocol (from 01/03/2005)

EU - Algeria Association Agreement (from 01/09/2005)

EU - Lebanon Association Agreement (from 01/04/2006)

EU - Albania Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/04/2009)

EU - Pacific States Interim EPA (from 20/12/2009)

EU - Montenegro Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/05/2010)

EU - Central America Association Agreement (from 01/08/2013)

EU - Serbia Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/09/2013)

EU - Bosnia and Herzegovina Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/06/2015)

EU - South Korea Free Trade Agreement (from 01/07/2015)

EU - Kosovo Stabilisation and Association Agreement (from 01/04/2016)

EU - Georgia Association Agreement (from 01/07/2016)

EU - Moldova Association Agreement (from 01/07/2016)

EU - Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) (from 21/09/2017)

EU - Eswatini (SADC) Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - Lesotho (SADC) Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - Mozambique (SADC) Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - Namibia (SADC) Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - South Africa Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - Botswana (SADC) Economic Partnership Agreement (from 05/02/2018)

EU - Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (from 01/02/2019)

EU - Eastern and Southern Africa States free trade agreement (from 07/02/2019)

UK - EU Trade Deal (from 01/01/2021)


What trade deals are there with other countries and economic unions?

None

The View From Belgium: Top Banker Pleads for Caution

Ernest Hemingway’s maxim that bankruptcy arrives gradually “and then suddenly” applies to banks as well: “The proliferation of social media and the ubiquity of online banking imply that when things

Liberalism and Its Discontents: Francis Fukuyama on the Future of History

Poor Francis. History didn’t end after all. Neither did liberalism triumph over the forces of evil. Possibly one of the most misunderstood or misinterpreted books of recent times, Francis Fukuyama’s
Read more

A Perfect Storm Perfected: EU Battles String of Calamities

It’s about the only thing missing from a world in turmoil: France going haywire and off the rails. The solid showing of Marine Le Pen at last Sunday’s polls gives

EXIM Hungary: Hungary’s Export Expert has Strong Focus on Finance and Foreign Market Expansion

EXIM, the official export credit agency of Hungary, is the only domestic bank and insurer specifically focusing on international trade, foreign market expansion, and investments. EXIM Hungary is the junction
Read more

Orban on Orbán: Cease and Desist, Your Position Is Untenable

Europe’s other ‘Orban’ sounds much more reasonable than the vociferous original one. Prime Minister Ludovic Orban of Romania yesterday chastised his Hungarian namesake for refusing to respect the founding principles

EU: Stage Set for Clash

The Hague is expected to deploy the biggest gun available to EU member states and roll out its veto to derail a Franco-German plan that introduces eurobonds under a different
Read more

Smoke and Mirrors Line the Fringes of the Pandemic

Luigi di Maio owes his rapid ascendancy in Italian politics to an almost virulent display of Euroscepticism. It propelled the former drinks vendor at the Naples San Paolo football stadium

Jean-Claude Juncker

Dismissed and ridiculed as a failed small-town administrator with a penchant for fine wines and cognacs, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker represents to some all that is wrong with the
Read more

MIGA (World Bank) – A New Boon for Emerging-Market Financing: Achieving Investment-Grade Bonds with MIGA’s Credit Enhancement

Many investors, lenders, and government officials are familiar with the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) of the World Bank Group. For 25 years, the agency has insured investments in developing

Trade with the United Kingdom

Source: UK Office for National Statistics, October 2022.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

CFI