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The monthly surplus was EUR 178 mln lower than in October 2024. Export volumes declined by 3.1% compared to a year earlier, while imports increased 1.1%. Adjusted for seasonal and working-day effects, exports fell 1.4% from September and imports were down 3.6%.
Exports were valued at EUR 12.8 bln in October, and imports totaled EUR 12.1 bln. In euro terms, export values fell 0.9% and imports rose 0.6% from the same month of the previous year.
Calendar-adjusted data showed sharper volume shifts, with exports down 3.6% and imports down 0.7%.
Export and import price changes supported a more favorable price environment. Export prices in forint weakened 0.6% year-on-year, while import prices fell 3.5%. As a result, the terms of trade improved by 3%. The forint strengthened 2.9% against the euro and 9.0% versus the U.S. dollar in October compared to a year earlier.
Machinery and transport equipment, the largest component of Hungary’s foreign trade, recorded a 2.6% drop in export volume, while imports in the category rose 6.4%. The product group reduced total export volume growth by 1.5 percentage points but added 2.9 percentage points to the growth of total imports.
Trade in manufactured goods declined on both sides of the ledger, with export volumes falling 6.2% and imports 6.6%, slowing overall turnover.
In contrast, the export volume of fuels and electric energy rose significantly by 20%, and imports increased 5.1%. Gains in this category mitigated the drop in total export volume by 0.6 percentage points and supported import volume growth by 0.4 percentage points.
Food, beverages, and tobacco exports fell 5.4%, while imports were 5.6% higher, contributing 0.4 percentage points to declines in exports and the same amount to growth in imports.
Trade with EU member states still accounted for the bulk of external turnover. Exports to the EU-27 fell by 3.7% and imports by 3.4%. The monthly surplus with the bloc narrowed by EUR 53 million to EUR 1.06 billion.
Outside the European Union, Hungary’s trade position deteriorated. Exports to extra-EU partners declined 4%, while imports rose 10%, resulting in a EUR 351 million deficit, EUR 126 mln more than a year earlier.
Looking at the first 10 months of 2025, exports reached EUR 123 bln and imports totaled EUR 115 bln. Export volumes were 0.3% below year-earlier levels, whereas imports increased 2%.
The year-to-date surplus reached EUR 8.5 bln, up EUR 555 mln from the same period in 2024. The terms of trade improved by 2.7% during the period. The forint weakened 2.1% against the euro but strengthened 0.9% versus the U.S. dollar on average in January–October.
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