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The trade balance deteriorated by EUR 1.14 bln.
Exports totaled EUR 12 bln, equivalent to HUF 4.38 tln, while imports reached EUR 12.5 bln, or HUF 4.555 tln. In euro terms, export values increased 16% and import values climbed 29% compared with August 2025.
Calendar-adjusted figures also showed export volumes falling 0.1% and import volumes rising 13%. Compared with July, seasonally and working-day-adjusted export volumes declined 2.8%, while import volumes increased 1.3%.
Forint-denominated export prices rose 6.3% year-on-year, while import prices increased 4.5%. The terms of trade improved 1.8%, as the forint strengthened 8.3% against the euro and 7.9% against the U.S. dollar.
Machinery Imports Drive Growth
Export volumes of machinery and transport equipment increased 4.9%, while import volumes surged 30%. The category offset the overall export volume decline by 2.5 percentage points and contributed 13 percentage points to import volume growth.
Manufactured goods export volumes fell 1.6%, while imports rose 1.8%. The category contributed 0.6 percentage points to the overall export decline and 0.7 percentage points to import growth.
Export volumes of fuels and electricity dropped 36%, while imports declined 7.4%. The category contributed 1.7 percentage points to the overall fall in exports and reduced import growth by 0.7 percentage points.
Food, beverage and tobacco export volumes decreased 1.8%, while imports fell 6.7%. These changes contributed 0.2 percentage points to the overall export decline and offset import growth by 0.5 percentage points.
Non-EU Trade Gap Widens
Export volumes to EU member states rose 2.3%, while import volumes from the bloc increased 8.2%. Hungary’s goods trade surplus with EU countries narrowed by EUR 35 million to EUR 779 million.
EU member states accounted for 75% of Hungary’s exports and 65% of its imports.
In trade with countries outside the EU, export volumes declined 1.8%, while import volumes increased 24%. The non-EU trade balance deteriorated by EUR 1.105 bln, resulting in a deficit of EUR 1.26 bln.
Eight-Month Surplus Narrows to EUR 4.9 Bln
In January-August, exports totaled EUR 107.3 bln, or HUF 39.611 tln, while imports amounted to EUR 102.4 bln, equivalent to HUF 37.799 tln.
Export volumes fell 1% compared with the same period in 2025, while import volumes increased 7%. The goods trade surplus narrowed by EUR 2.1 bln to EUR 4.9 bln.
Forint-denominated export prices increased 1.1% over the eight months, while import prices declined 3.8%. The terms of trade improved 5.1%.
The forint strengthened 8.3% against the euro and 13% against the U.S. dollar compared with January-August 2025.
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