In February 2015, industrial output grew by some 6 percent year-on-year. The sector has been expanding for the eighteenth consecutive month and the fact that order volume jumped by 20 percent over the past one year signals further growth.

Several factors are pointing to balanced expansion: output was up in almost every region in ten out of the thirteen sub sectors, while domestic and foreign sales also increased.

In line with preliminary data, industrial output was 5.8 percent higher year-on-year in February 2015. In the initial two months of 2015, the sector’s output grew by 5.6 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.

The manufacturing sector expanded by some 6 percent, while output at the largest sub sector, vehicle manufacturing, showed once again double-digit growth of 17 percent. However, it has to be noted that this was not the only division with double-digit growth: in February, the output of electronic consumer products, for example, soared by more than 20 percent and that of rubber, plastics and non-metallic mineral products jumped by 13 percent. Industrial exports were 7.9 percent higher, while domestic sales were up by 5.2 percent year-on-year.

Besides the performance of the domestic industrial sector, the volume of foreign trade, investment, retail sales and construction sector output has recently also increased outstandingly. The performance of the industrial sector has been adding massive momentum to economic growth; therefore the Government will continue to focus on bolstering industrial output and underpinning the remarkable performance of the Hungarian economy.

Hungary has recently become one of the fastest growing industrialized countries within Europe, Minister of State for Economic Regulation Béla Glattfelder said, commenting on the latest data released by the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) in Budapest.

Béla Glattfelder added that industrial output data are partly in line with prior expectations, but some statistics have come in even better.

The Government aims to bring Hungary’s GDP-by-industry from the current 22 percent to 30 percent by 2020, he stated.

(Ministry for National Economy)