Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó and his Czech counterpart Lubomír Zaorálek have emphasised that the Hungarian and Czech economies are well matched, the trend of bilateral trade is showing dynamic growth and the conditions for development of cooperation are outstanding.

According to the Hungarian minister it is clear that the foreign trade efforts of the two countries have borne fruit, and that the economic partners are well matched and trust each other.

At a press conference after the bilateral negotiations Péter Szijjártó nevertheless said that it had not been possible to increase bilateral trade by more than 10% last year and by more than 6% in the past two months.

He emphasised the emergence and the importance of so-called flagship projects, which are always the critical points of economic cooperation between the two countries. “If these projects are successful, then they can open up new opportunities for future projects”, the Minister said.

He recalled that three Hungarian companies play leading roles in the Czech economy: the MOL group, which has 318 gas stations in the Czech Republic, and is thus the second-largest market operator; Richter Gedeon, which is leader in the field of gynaecological medicines in the Czech Republic; and Danubius Hotels, which has become the third largest spa company in the country.

The Minister said that Skoda has just won another public procurement tender in Hungary and also intends to participate in the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant. Furthermore, more than two thousand people are employed in Hungary by the companies of Deputy Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.

The parties have opened a EUR 360 million credit line at Eximbank, in order to enhance cooperation at the level of small and medium-sized businesses.

" Hungarian-Czech cooperation is of decisive importance in the terms of Central European and Visegrád Group cooperation”, the Minister stated.

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade/MTI)