The ECB asset purchase programme announced on Thursday will help Europe, especially the Eurozone, to enter a growth phase and the expansion of European markets will also be beneficial from the aspect of the Hungarian economy and Hungary’s export volume, Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga said at the ceremony for presenting the December Awards for Successful Enterprises in Budapest.

Enterprises have been honoured with these awards since august 2013, and as this event shows there are several companies in Hungary that are worthy of recognition on the basis of their performance, the Minister remarked.

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In December 2014, the “Investor of the Month” award went to Robert Bosch Energy and Body Systems Ltd; while Meditop Gyógyszeripari Ltd was awarded the “SME of the Month” title, and in the category of “Startup of the Month” the Minister handed the award to Codie, a maker of educational toys.

In his speech, the Minister pointed out that Europe’s economies have never before had such a bad start to the year, but one can perceive tentative optimism among market participants: they believe that recent market turbulences have become manageable, he stressed.

With regard to oil prices Mihály Varga underlined that over the past one year the USD price of oil on world markets have fallen by 55 percent. Sectors with high import demand and countries highly dependent on imports are expecting that in the coming months their better pricing position will increase competitiveness. Hungary is also in this situation, as the country imports a lot of oil and gas, he said.

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The Minister also mentioned the issue of Swiss franc exchange fluctuations, stressing that “one must understand the Swiss decision”, which although “wreaked havoc on forex markets” but it also proved that the Hungarian Government’s measures aimed at cutting forex debt and reducing the share of forex borrowers have been right.
The Government continues to bolster higher added value production, cut red tape for enterprises, stimulate investment and job creation, Mihály Varga stated.

In his tribute to awardees, the Minister said that the example of Bosch, a key partner for the Government, proves that “we can indeed deliver results by finding the right partners and mutually assisting each other.”  He called it gratifying that Meditop has become a stable player within the Hungarian pharmaceuticals sector and talking about Codie he remarked that it is a good sign that the company has managed to be successful in raising the awareness of young people in the utilization of technology and informatics. He hopes, he said, that Codie will thrive not only on the Hungarian but on global markets.

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Robert Bosch Hungary Ltd CEO Javier González Pareja said that the company had long-term plans when they had decided to settle in Hungary and by now the country has been turned into a strategic base of Bosch innovation. He emphasised that Bosch provides jobs for more than 10 thousand people in Hungary.

Meditop CEO Dávid Greskovits said this award is the recognition of twenty-five years of hard and often seemingly futile work. The CEO expressed gratitude that the Government has recognized the importance of the role of SMEs in the Hungarian economy.

Ádám Lipecz of Codia said fledgling enterprises face a number challenges and awards like these are important partly because they show that the company has been heading in the right direction.

(Ministry for National Economy)