Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga presented the “Investor of the Month” award to Nemak Győr Alumíniumöntöde Ltd; while Hidrofilt Vízkezelést Tervező és Kivitelező Ltd was awarded the “SME of the Month” title, and in the category of “Startup of the Month” the Minister handed the award to Indivizo Ltd at a ceremony held in the building of the Ministry for National Economy in Budapest.

At the event, the Minister praised the achievements of the Hungarian economy and pointed out that in case low crude oil prices persist, they may add as much as 0.5-0.6 percentage points to economic growth next year, on top of the original estimate of 2.5 percent.

In his speech, the Minister stressed that since August last year he has presented awards every month to those laudable enterprises that have contributed to economic expansion with their remarkable results.

Fortunately, the Minister added, the Hungarian economy is in such a good shape that the question is no longer whether any enterprise is worthy of the award, but which one to pick out of so many worthy ones.

The Minister for National Economy said that the number of enterprises that are already larger than an SME is increasing and as these qualify as large companies, EU funding is getting out of their reach. Therefore, the Ministry launched as of 1 December a department for fostering relations with select enterprises. This unit has been headed by Deputy State Secretary Zoltán Marczinkó who is commissioned to keep in touch with 80-100 large companies which do not belong to multinationals but require direct support.

Summing up the year 2014, the Minister pointed out that Hungary has been among the EU’s top performers with regard to economic growth. Growth will average 3.2 percent this year and the recently adopted budget for 2015 is expected to facilitate further expansion. Mihály Varga stressed that Hungary’s fiscal deficit will stay below 3 percent of GDP this year and next. Over the past three months, the amount of fiscal revenues exceeded that of expenditures which phenomenon has been unprecedented for the past 25 years.

He also emphasised that the inflation rate has been in negative territory for the past four months, resulting mainly from falling energy prices. In case Hungary’s energy trade shortfall of USD 8.5-9bn drops by one-third, the competitiveness of the Hungarian economy will improve. Low oil prices are also expected to fuel economic growth, lifting it by 0.5-0.6 percentage points in 2015.

Speaking about next year’s economic prospects Mihály Varga reiterated that 60 percent of EU funding will be spent on economic development projects and thus the Government aims to bolster employment, added value in production, R&D as well as innovation.

Winner of the “Investor of the Month” award was Nemak Győr Alumíniumöntöde Ltd, a manufacturer and developer of top-tech aluminium cylinder heads and engine blocks. Over the past years, the company has invested HUF 6bn and created 200 new jobs.

With awarding the “SME of the Month” title to Hidrofilt Vízkezelést Tervező és Kivitelező Ltd, the jury acknowledged high quality production through innovative technology, the minister said and added that the enterprise has become one of the largest waste water-treatment companies in Central Europe.

The “Start-up of the Month” in November is Indivizo Ltd, the creator of a video interview platform that helps HR professionals in the early-stage selection of labour force. This provides more flexibility also for job-seekers in comparison to traditional interviews.

At the event, Mihály Varga also presented other distinctions (Magyar Gazdaságért Díj) to awardees who could not be present at the ceremony on 23 October: to József Béres, President of Béres Gyógyszergyár Ltd, Dale A Martin, President-CEO of Siemens Hungary Ltd, and Csaba Péter Szajlai, economic journalist and contributor of Gazdasági Rádió, ECHO TV and political daily Magyar Hírlap.

(Ministry for National Economy)