The proximity of the two countries and the competitiveness of Hungarian enterprises within the EU market facilitate the further tightening of bilateral trade relations, Hungary’s Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga and Switzerland’s Economic Affairs Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann concluded at a meeting on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank annual conference in Lima, Peru.
The two politicians welcomed the fact that bilateral trade relations have been expanding: this has been confirmed by the EUR 1.3bn of annual trade volume and Swiss development projects implemented in Hungary this year. Foreign trade data from the initial six months of this year also show a positive trend: the volumes of Hungarian exports to and imports from Switzerland were up in the period January-June 2015 by 4.2 percent, to EUR 415.4 million, and by 21.2 percent, to EUR 296.8 million, respectively, year-on-year.
Mihály Varga also welcomed the fact the Hungary has received CHF 132 million (EUR 121 million) from Swiss contribution funds designed to reduce economic and social inequalities. This amount, he said, facilitates the realization of significant development projects in Northern and Eastern Hungary, in the fields of environmental protection, infrastructure development, social inclusion, tourism as well as research and development. The Minister stressed the Government places special emphasis on continuing the existing mechanism beyond 2017 and adding new elements to it, as this cooperation is mutually beneficial for both parties.
With a share of 1.8 percent of FDI, Switzerland is the ninth largest investor in Hungary: at the end of 2014, Swiss FDI totalled EUR 1 452.9 million. The number of Hungarian affiliates of Swiss enterprises is about 300, and these employ some 40 thousand people in the country.
(Ministry for National Economy)
