Nicholas Pongratz

Transport

1,600 km of bike paths developed in Hungary

So far, 1,600 kilometers of such development have been implemented in Hungary this year, Minister for Innovation and Technology László...

Government

Kósa admits to Hungary using NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware

Lajos Kósa, a senior lawmaker from Hungary's ruling party Fidesz has acknowledged the Interior Ministry bought and used Pegasus spy...

Analysis

Finance Ministry lowers GDP target to 6.8%

The Ministry of Finance has lowered its projection for GDP growth this year to 6.8% against the backdrop of higher...

Power

Alteo inaugurates battery storage facility

Listed alternative energy company Alteo inaugurated a 5 MW battery storage facility in Kazincbarcika (180 km northeast of Budapest) yesterday,...

Power

Paks II to comply with OAH request

Paks II, the project company for upgrading Hungary's sole commercial nuclear power plant, is expediting responses to a National Atomic...

In Hungary

Hungary presents 2022 Giro d’Italia Grand Start

The head of Giro d'Italia organizer RCS Sport presented the first three stages of next year's cycling race at a...

Banking

Lenders’ stock of baby support loans at HUF 1.462 tln

Hungarian lenders' stock of prenatal baby support loans stood at HUF 1.462 trillion at the end of September, up HUF...

Transport

GreenGo upgrading EV fleet

Auto-sharing company GreenGo yesterday announced plans to upgrade its fleet of electric vehicles with ones that can travel farther, according...

Trade

Export growth slows in August

Hungary's export growth slowed further in August as shutdowns because of supply chain interruptions caused the output of the automotive...

MNB

MNB buys HUF 37 bln in gov’t QE securities

The National Bank of Hungary (MNB) bought HUF 37 billion of government securities under its quantitative easing program in the...

Banking

Takarékbank clients ask for HUF 5 bln under Green Home Program

Clients of Takarékbank have submitted applications for HUF 5 billion of mortgage loans in the framework of the Green Home...

Fintech

Crypto exchange CoinCash acquires rival MrCoin

CoinCash is set to take over the MrCoin brand and carry on the services of MrCoin.eu, according to Attila Mogyorósi,...

Transport

BAHART traveler numbers up 21% 

Traveler numbers on scheduled passenger ferries operated by Balatoni Hajózási (BAHART) had risen almost 21% when the season ended on...

Analysis

Voluntary pension fund costs fell last year

The costs of voluntary pension funds for members developed favorably last year, according to a recent summary from the National...

Int'l Relations

Hungary sending ventilators, PPE, medication to Romania

Hungary will send 40 ventilators, 1,650 face masks for non-invasive ventilation and 3,000 boxes of favipiravir, a drug used to...

Ukraine Crisis

Hungary Again Digs in Heels on EU Accession Clusters

Hungary withheld approval for Ukraine’s next European Union accession clusters for a fifth time, after Prime Minister Péter Magyar rejected...

Ukraine Crisis

Hungarian-Ukrainian Relations Advance, to a Degree

Hungarian-Ukrainian relations advanced on several fronts in August, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invited Prime Minister Péter Magyar to Kyiv, Budapest...

Ukraine Crisis

Hungary Again Stalls on Opening Further Ukrainian EU Accession Clusters

Within five days, Hungary twice declined to clear the first procedural step toward opening two further European Union accession clusters...

Ukraine Crisis

Still no Date or Venue for Magyar-Zelenskyy Summit

Hungary’s government ordered an investigation into the Orbán-era seizure of Ukrainian bank assets, lifted a nine-month ban on Ukrainian media...

Ukraine Crisis

Magyar Lifts Veto on European Peace Facility, EU Accession Talks

Prime Minister Péter Magyar lifted Hungary’s two-year veto on European Union arms reimbursements on June 2 and announced a comprehensive...

Ukraine Crisis

Kyiv, Budapest Closer to Minority Rights Agreement

In the concluding weeks of May, Prime Minister Péter Magyar managed to secure EUR 16.4 billion in frozen EU funds...

Ukraine Crisis

Ukraine Makes Reset With Hungary a Foreign Policy Priority

Péter Magyar’s May 9 inauguration as Hungary’s prime minister, formally concluding Viktor Orbán’s 16-year continuous rule, brought an immediate shift...

Ukraine Crisis

Can Tisza Victory Help Budapest and Kyiv Reset Relations?

The European Union has approved a EUR 90 billion loan for Ukraine and unblocked delayed Russia sanctions after Hungary lifted...

Ukraine Crisis

Election Result Offers Hungarian Reset With EU and Ukraine

In what could prove a watershed moment for Hungarian-Ukrainian relations, Péter Magyar’s Tisza Party decisively ended the 16-year rule of...

Energy

Oil, Gas Pipeline Threats Highlight Hungary’s Energy Dependency

With an oil pipeline halted since January, a global price shock from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and...

Ukraine Crisis

Fidesz, Tisza Exchange Tit-for-tat Spying Allegations on Foreign Interference

Hungary’s government and opposition traded accusations of serving foreign intelligence services in the final days before the April 12 election,...

Ukraine Crisis

Ukraine Loan Blocked by Orbán, Szijjártó Phone Briefings Raise Eyebrows

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó has been accused of covertly briefing Moscow on EU meeting proceedings, prompting...

Ukraine Crisis

Hungary Seizes Ukrainian Cash, Gold from Armored Truck Convoy

Hungary detained seven Ukrainian bank employees transporting USD 40 million, EUR 35 mln, and nine kilograms of gold through Budapest...

Ukraine Crisis

Budapest and Kyiv Trade ‘Blackmail’ Allegations Over Energy Supplies

Hungary intensified its confrontation with Ukraine over halted Russian oil shipments through the Druzhba (ironically, the name translates as “Friendship”)...

Ukraine Crisis

Gov’t Outrage Over Deaths During ‘Forced Conscription’ of Ethnic Hungarians

The death of a second ethnic Hungarian during Ukrainian military conscription processing triggered a series of escalating measures by the...

Hungary Again Digs in Heels on EU Accession Clusters

Hungary withheld approval for Ukraine’s next European Union accession clusters for a fifth time, after Prime Minister Péter Magyar rejected...

Hungarian-Ukrainian Relations Advance, to a Degree

Hungarian-Ukrainian relations advanced on several fronts in August, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invited Prime Minister Péter Magyar to Kyiv, Budapest...

Hungary Again Stalls on Opening Further Ukrainian EU Accession Clusters

Within five days, Hungary twice declined to clear the first procedural step toward opening two further European Union accession clusters...

Still no Date or Venue for Magyar-Zelenskyy Summit

Hungary’s government ordered an investigation into the Orbán-era seizure of Ukrainian bank assets, lifted a nine-month ban on Ukrainian media...

Magyar Lifts Veto on European Peace Facility, EU Accession Talks

Prime Minister Péter Magyar lifted Hungary’s two-year veto on European Union arms reimbursements on June 2 and announced a comprehensive...

Kyiv, Budapest Closer to Minority Rights Agreement

In the concluding weeks of May, Prime Minister Péter Magyar managed to secure EUR 16.4 billion in frozen EU funds...

Ukraine Makes Reset With Hungary a Foreign Policy Priority

Péter Magyar’s May 9 inauguration as Hungary’s prime minister, formally concluding Viktor Orbán’s 16-year continuous rule, brought an immediate shift...

Can Tisza Victory Help Budapest and Kyiv Reset Relations?

The European Union has approved a EUR 90 billion loan for Ukraine and unblocked delayed Russia sanctions after Hungary lifted...

Election Result Offers Hungarian Reset With EU and Ukraine

In what could prove a watershed moment for Hungarian-Ukrainian relations, Péter Magyar’s Tisza Party decisively ended the 16-year rule of...

Oil, Gas Pipeline Threats Highlight Hungary’s Energy Dependency

With an oil pipeline halted since January, a global price shock from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and...

Fidesz, Tisza Exchange Tit-for-tat Spying Allegations on Foreign Interference

Hungary’s government and opposition traded accusations of serving foreign intelligence services in the final days before the April 12 election,...

Ukraine Loan Blocked by Orbán, Szijjártó Phone Briefings Raise Eyebrows

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó has been accused of covertly briefing Moscow on EU meeting proceedings, prompting...

Hungary Seizes Ukrainian Cash, Gold from Armored Truck Convoy

Hungary detained seven Ukrainian bank employees transporting USD 40 million, EUR 35 mln, and nine kilograms of gold through Budapest...

Budapest and Kyiv Trade ‘Blackmail’ Allegations Over Energy Supplies

Hungary intensified its confrontation with Ukraine over halted Russian oil shipments through the Druzhba (ironically, the name translates as “Friendship”)...

Gov’t Outrage Over Deaths During ‘Forced Conscription’ of Ethnic Hungarians

The death of a second ethnic Hungarian during Ukrainian military conscription processing triggered a series of escalating measures by the...