Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga presented the “Investor of the Month” award to Poppe+Portthoff Hungária Gépgyártó Ltd; while “Kis” Szerelő és Kereskedő Ltd was awarded the “SME of the Month” title, and in the category of “Startup of the Month” the Minister handed the award to H3Hungary Ltd at a ceremony held in the building of the Ministry for National Economy in Budapest.
On Monday, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Deputy State Secretary for International Relations, Katalin Tóth, received Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Forestry Phouang Parisak Pravongviengkham of the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos.
Following moderate expansion in August, as factories temporarily halted production due to summer recess, in September 2014 Hungary’s industrial output picked up speed again as expected and achieved outstanding growth of 7.6 percent year-on-year. Several factors are signalling that this growth is based on sound fundamentals: expansion has been underpinned by both exports and domestic demand; output was higher in twelve out of the altogether thirteen manufacturing sub sectors and output increased in the every Hungarian region in the initial nine months of the year.
It is in the strategic interest of Europe that gas from Azerbaijan reaches its Central and Eastern region, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Tuesday following talks with Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The Ministry of Justice will submit a bill to Parliament on the FX loan conversion. The legislation will make possible to carry out the conversion parallel with the compensation of borrowers in the first half of 2015.
Similarly to September, consumer prices were also lower in the month of October 2014. According to data compiled by the Hungarian Central Statistical Office, in October 2014 prices were 0.4 percent lower year-on-year. The key factor shaping inflation was the mandatory lowering of utility prices.
Practically all foreign currency loan contracts will have to be converted into forint denominated loans, Government Spokesperson Zoltán Kovács said at a press conference on Monday. He also said that an agreement is yet to be reached on the interest rates of converted loans.
A joint interview with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Bavarian Prime Minister Horst Seehofer was published under the title „One Hungarian, One Bavarian – No Dispute” in the online edition of the German conservative newspaper Die Welt.
In September 2014, tourism traffic growth within the Hungarian tourism sector has continued, as the number of tourism nights reached 2 million, while the total number of guests jumped by 4.9 percent, year-on-year. Higher traffic is also reflected by income data: accommodation fee revenues exceeded HUF 18bn, which constitutes an increase of some 9 percent in the observed period. Growth in the number of domestic guests has continued to be an engine of the sector’s remarkable performance. This trend has been driven by tourism investment projects, better quality services and the SZÉP Card.
Hosting the Europa Cantat international choir festival in 2015 could benefit the southwest Hungarian city of Pécs in a similar manner to when the city was the European Cultural Capital in 2010, Minister of State for Culture Péter Hoppál said at a press conference in Pécs on Friday.