Alba Airport Gets Go-ahead

September 22nd 2008

Hungary's building authorities have given the green light for the start of construction at the Alba Airport, near Szekesfehervar. Biggeorge's, which is building the airport together with the local councils of Szekesfehervar and Aba, reported the news on September 22nd 2008.
The airport will start serving international low-fare and charter flights in H1 2010. It will be the country's second-biggest airport after Ferihegy, in the capital.
Biggeorge's also plans to build a business and industrial park at the site.
Biggeorge's property development portfolio is worth more than HUF 150 billion (EUR 625 million).

Kopint-Tarki Lowers Growth Forecast for 2009 to 2.8 pct

September 19th 2008

Economic think tank Kopint-Tarki has kept its projection for Hungary's 2008 GDP growth unchanged at 2.2 pct, but lowered its projection for 2009 growth to 2.8 pct in its latest forecast, down from 3.0 pct in the previous one published in June.
Kopint-Tarki continues to project average annual CPI of 6.5 pct in 2008 and 4.2 pct in 2009.
The think tank lowered its projection for industrial output growth in 2008 to 4.5 pct from 6.2 pct. Because of the economic slowdown, growth is not expected to pick up much in 2009 either.
Kopint-Tarki projects that household consumption will inch up just 1 pct in 2008. It sees investments expanding 2 pct, down from the earlier projected 3 pct. Investments are seen increasing 5 pct in 2009.

Government Package to Reduce Taxes by HUF 205 bn in 2009

September 19th 2008

The government's tax package will reduce the tax burden by a gross HUF HUF 205 billion (EUR 854 million) next year, under the originally planned HUF 260 billion (EUR 1.083 billion), but net tax savings will still reach HUF 145 billion (EUR 604 million), as announced earlier, Finance Minister Janos Veres announced after the package was submitted to Parliament on September 19th 2008.
The decision to cut the gross reduction was made after talks with social partners, Mr Veres said.
Businesses will enjoy two-thirds of the savings and private citizens one-third.

Parliament Makes EUR 25 m Underground Car Park Matter of National Security

September 19th 2008

A parliamentary committee has made plans to build a HUF 6 billion (EUR 25 million) car park underneath Kossuth Square, in front of the parliament building, a priority project in the interest of national security, business daily Napi Gazdasag reported on September 19th 2008.
The decision means bidders in the tender to build the garage will be required to have security clearance from national authorities.
The tender is scheduled to be invited in October, and the car park is to be completed by December 2010.
The car park will have 3-4 levels with 400-500 spaces, Zoltan Gyarmati, managing director of local council-owned Parking Ltd., told Napi Gazdasag.
The square's owner - the local council - has attached a condition to the garage's construction: local residents must be allowed to use at least part of the facility, Napi Gazdasag said.

Consumer Price Inflation Slows to 6.5 Pct in August

September 12th 2008

Twelve-month consumer price inflation slowed to 6.5 pct in August from 6.7 pct in July, the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on September 11th 2008. Consumer prices inched down 0.3 pct in August compared to July.
Consumer prices in January-August rose 6.8 pct yr/yr.
The twelve-month CPI was slightly under a 6.6 pct estimate by analysts in a poll by business daily Napi Gazdasag.
Twelve-month inflation was 6.7 pct in July, 6.7 pct in June, 7.0 pct in May and 6.6 pct in April.

Wheat Crop Up by 42.0 pct in 2008

September 19th 2008

Hungary's wheat crop was 5.654 million tons this year, 42 pct higher than in 2007 and 26.2 pct more than the average over the preceding five years, the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) reported on September 19th 2008.
The average wheat yield of 5.03 tons per hectare was a similar 40.2 pct higher than a year earlier and 25.8 pct more compared to the previous five years’ average. Wheat was harvested from an area of 1.125 million hectares, a slight 1.0 pct larger area than in 2007.
The total grain crop, excluding maize, rose 41.9 pct yr/yr to 7.934 million tons, up 26.2 pct from the average over the previous five years.

Government Steps Had Much to Do with Advance on Doing Business list

September 18th 2008

Reforms carried out by the government in the past two years had much to do with Hungary's nine-spot advance in the World Bank's latest Doing Business ranking, Finance Minister Janos Veres said on September 18th 2008.
Hungary moved up nine spots to 41st position in the World Bank's Doing Business 2009 ranking, which tracks reforms aimed at simplifying business regulations, strengthening property rights, opening up access to credit and enforcing contracts.
The World Bank's objective opinion shows the steps taken so far have been in the right direction, Mr Veres said. He added that the government is ready to take further steps in the interest of improving Hungary's competitiveness.

Construction Output down Adjusted 12.8 pct yr/yr in July

September 18th 2008

The output of Hungary's construction sector fell 12.8 pct yr/yr in July after a 9.0 pct decline in June according to workday-adjusted figures. Unadjusted figures show a 11.8 pct decrease after a 8.1 pct, the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on September 18th 2008.
Unadjusted output inched a slight 0.6 pct yr/yr in April after falling for twelve months and decreased 7.1 pct in May.
Construction-sector output dropped 2.8 pct from June, following a monthly 5.4 pct drop in June, according to seasonally and workday adjusted figures. The further monthly declines came after a slight 0.8 pct fall in May and month-on-month increases in the preceding three months.

Hungarian Companies Participate in World Bank Projects Worth USD 63 million+

September 17th 2008

Hungarian companies participated in 92 World Bank projects together worth more than USD 63 million, said Gyorgy Kerekes at a conference of the Hungarian Investment and Trade Development Agency (ITDH)in Budapest, on September 17th 2008.
The World Bank often breaks its big projects into smaller parts, allowing SMEs and even independent consultancies to win contracts worth tens of thousands of dollars apiece, Mr Kerekes said.

Andrassy Boulevard draws more luxury brands

September 17th 2008

Though Hungarians' purchasing power has dropped, Budapest's Andrassy Boulevard is drawing more luxury brands: Gucci will open a shop in a few days, and Armani will follow by year-end, business daily Napi Gazdasag reported on September 17th 2008.
The capital's narrow Vaci utca, a pedestrian street, was long the prime location for luxury brand shops in Hungary, but more and more brands see the broad, tree-lined Andrassy Boulevard as a more elegant choice over Vaci utca, which is lined with vendors of cheap souvenirs and packed with tourists in the summer. Among the brands that will soon open or are expected to open shops on Andrassy Boulevard are luxury cell phone maker Vertu, Dolce and Gabbana, TAG Heuer, Chanel and Dior, Napi Gazdasag wrote.