Hungary

Central Europe is monetary policy’s control test

8 Nov 2021

The Czech, Polish and Hungarian central banks are hiking interest rates, the traditional riposte to rising inflation. In contrast, peers in major economies are responding less aggressively to price pressures. That makes for an interesting experiment.

Poor-country central banks will go awry aping Fed

4 May 2020

Rate-setters from Indonesia to Hungary are copying Fed Chair Jay Powell by buying bonds. Others could well follow. That will curb borrowing costs at a time of rising public spending. But these policymakers run bigger inflation and credibility risks than their developed peers.

Orbanomics may be Hungary’s best political shield

6 Apr 2020

Covid-19 has enabled Viktor Orban to rule by decree. Busy with the virus, the EU may fail to stop abuses. But the prime minister's power grab may be limited by Hungary's economic reliance on foreign investment, which gives the like of BMW more scope to register disapproval.

Vodafone’s $22 bln deal is worth financial strain

9 May 2018

The UK mobile group is buying Liberty Global’s German and eastern European assets. Boss Vittorio Colao is funding the deal with debt and funky convertible bonds. He can point to juicy cost savings to quell any concerns about Vodafone’s creaky balance sheet.

Hadas: Even Trump can’t make graft great again

11 Apr 2018

Resistance to corruption is evident in cases against ex-leaders of South Korea, Brazil and South Africa. Old royal privileges make no sense in modern economies. U.S. officials and the corporate elite have strayed, but rising middle classes will keep straightening out the crooked.

Where to put Europe’s bank regulator? Try Bulgaria

26 May 2017

Brussels has invited member states to bid to host the European Banking Authority when its current host, Britain, quits the EU. The EBA hasn’t exactly dazzled in its handling of bank stress tests. But it could be a decent trophy for a non-euro country that feels unloved by the bloc.

Dimming Olympic flame casts long shadow on bloat

1 Mar 2017

Budapest saw the light and became the fourth city to drop its bid for the 2024 Summer Games, leaving only Los Angeles and Paris in the race. With the ranks of potential hosts getting exhausted, one good way to save the global athletic fest would be to cut events back to basics.

Hungary throws straw on Europe’s values bonfire

3 Oct 2016

Only a minority voted against EU migrant quotas. Yet almost no one voted for them. Like Britain’s Brexit supporters, Hungarian nationalists want both the benefits of free trade and control of immigration. Europe can resist, but the calls to blunt its ideals are getting louder.

Erste deal sees Hungary’s Orban thaw on banks

9 Feb 2015

The Austrian lender is to sell 15 pct of its Budapest-based business to the Hungarian state. Prime Minister Viktor Orban will cut a swingeing banking tax, while Erste will lend 550 mln euros in-country. Hungary’s growth prospects make this a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Foreign banks’ tricky call on Hungary: stay or go?

18 Nov 2014

Prime Minister Viktor Orban wants more of the banking sector owned domestically, and one foreign lender has already quit. The concern is that high-handed regulation intensifies. Yet Budapest’s bank supervision is not yet so unreasonable to make leaving a no-brainer. 

Edward Hadas: Illiberal economics is here to stay

15 Aug 2014

The majority of voters in Russia, Turkey and Hungary have all endorsed governments run by charismatic and bullying strongmen. China seems to be getting more authoritarian too. The economic problems with these arrangements are large. But that doesn’t mean the systems are doomed.

Erste’s eastern problems are partly self-inflicted

4 Jul 2014

The Austrian bank’s shares sank 14 pct after nasty surprises in Romania and Hungary led it to predict a 1.5 bln euro loss this year. The charges should be one-offs, and Erste doesn’t need capital. But the bank has to be more cautious about business in its riskier outposts.   

A decade on, some EU values still look strong

2 May 2014

Eight of the 10 countries which joined the union on May 1, 2004 were former communist states. Since then both old and new members have gained, economically and culturally. The EU has proved remarkably strong. But its financial and political values look far less robust. 

Baiting the EU will only go so far for Hungary

7 Apr 2014

Viktor Orban won re-election with Brussels-condemned policies such as a flat tax, a floating exchange rate and levies on foreign companies. But his populist disdain for property rights can do long-term damage and his big Russian deals are risky. More orthodoxy will work better.

Hungary’s budding market success may not last

6 Mar 2013

Investors seem hungry for Hungary. Last month Budapest raised funds from the market for the first time since 2011, luring buyers with high returns and improved finances. But the government’s erratic agenda ahead of a 2014 election could curb future appetite for the country’s debt.

Warning: emerging economies can go backwards, too

3 May 2012

Bolivia has followed Argentina in the pointless nationalisation of Spanish-owned assets. Argentina is fiddling with its central bank, as Hungary tried to. The obstacles to growth in emerging economies can be large. Investors should beware. Emerging economies can go down as well as up.

Hungary’s choice: disaster or surrender

10 Jan 2012

Budapest needs financial aid from the IMF and EU after its populist policies scared away investors. A swift deal would calm fears of contagion to Austria and central Europe. But international lenders can only agree if the government repeals its most outrageous reforms.

EU can’t afford to be soft on Hungary

4 Jan 2012

Too much is at stake to go easy on Budapest. Hungary’s current authoritarian policies would disqualify it for EU membership. The country needs an IMF-EU bailout. The rescuers should keep the pressure on populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, even at the risk of a major clash.

IMF needs to keep powder dry for usual suspects

23 Dec 2011

The fund is getting an extra $200 bln to aid with the rescue of wealthy Europe. But the downgrade of Hungary’s credit rating is a reminder that there could be more traditional middle-income demands for aid, too. The IMF will have to allocate its growing pot of money carefully.

Budapest needs IMF cash and its bitter medicine

18 Nov 2011

Hungary is likely to be central Europe’s first casualty of euro zone crisis. Growth is poor, debt is high and a credit ratings downgrade to junk is likely. Disquiet over government policy is a problem and risks of deleveraging by Western banks are large. Hungary needs IMF funds.