As ever, Lake Balaton is on many Hungarian and expat agendas in August. Not only does the “Hungarian sea” provide relief from the sweltering summer heat; the wine regions in the area are positively brimming with vinous treats for wine lovers.

The self-taught guitarist fled Hungary in 1956, made his way to the States and had a huge influence on Carlos Santana, among others. He died tragically young.

András Sávos has been managing director of Knorr-Bremse Rail Systems Budapest, the Hungarian subsidiary of the Munich-based Knorr-Bremse Group, since 2015. He became president of the German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK) this year, and talks to the Budapest Business Journal about the challenges and opportunities of doing business here.

Economic relations between Germany and Hungary have been vigorous during recent decades. Based on the latest statistics, significant results have been achieved in terms of foreign trade and investment, the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency tells the Budapest Business Journal.

Machine translation has been gaining ever more ground globally and, to some extent, in Hungary as well. Though it aids the translating process, it is unlikely to replace translators entirely in the foreseeable future.

Sziget Festival first announced its “Love Revolution” campaign two years ago, with a focus on the importance of sustainability, human rights, condemning war, and speaking out against discrimination based on skin color, religion, or sexual orientation. This year’s program features a range of world famous speakers such as Dr. Jane Goodall and Emi Mahmoud.

The Hungarian translation market is a busy sector employing a huge number of freelancers, with large agencies fighting price depression caused by one-man bands without proper qualifications, market actors tell the Budapest Business Journal.

There is no denying that it is getting really hot outside. Every continent has its fair share of heatwaves during the summer; most recently it was the United States that had to endure an extremely hot weekend, followed by much of Western Europe last week.

Headteacher Zsuzsa Szilánk talks with the Budapest Business Journal about what the Maimonidész English-Hungarian Jewish Secondary Grammar School in Budapest has to offer students interested in learning the English language, getting familiar with the Jewish religion, and opportunities to study abroad.

Far from the fumes and heat of Budapest, deep in the southwest countryside of Zala, a group of artists, musicians and other such folk got together in the summer of 1992 for a cool week of musical jamming, poetry reading, discussion and general bonhomie.

In their latest Investor Column, Les Nemethy and Sergey Glekov look at the arguments in favor of taking out a loan to execute an M&A deal.

Prologis has achieved BREEAM sustainability accreditation for six logistics facilities in Hungary including BREEAM In-Use “Very Good” accreditation for a 10,750 sqm facility at Prologis Park Budapest-Sziget.

Skanska has sold the 14,000 sqm Nordic Light Trio office building to JR AMC, a South Korean real estate investment trust. This is the first office investment in the country by the trust after transactions in Vienna, Dublin and Paris.

Hungarians are almost twice as brand loyal as the average global citizen: 15% (nearly one in seven) of Magyars say they stick to their favored brands against a mere 8% of the international public, according to the latest Global Consumer Loyalty survey by market research company Nielsen.

The Monetary Council of the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) once again left the base rate unchanged at its latest rate setting meeting, and, albeit expected by many, the European Central Bank also kept the interest rate on hold last week.

The German corporate love affair with Hungary continues unabated. There are historical links in play, of course (Balaton was the meeting place for East and West Germans separated by the Wall), but the simple truth is that the two economies are very deeply connected. 

Fourteen private individuals and the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MKIK) have set up the Carpathian Basin Business Promotion Chamber, a new organization to build economic cooperation between countries of the Carpathian Basin, MKIK head László Parragh announced on Wednesday.

While the majority of people in Budapest still order taxis over the phone, mobile apps are gaining traction, with the average fare amounting to HUF 3,000, according to a survey carried out for major city taxi company Főtaxi.

Poultry breeder Baromfi-Coop, a member of the Master Good group, inaugurated a HUF 2.6 billion plant processing 60,000 tonnes of poultry manure a year in Nyírjákó (NE Hungary) on Wednesday. The ceremony was attended by Minister of Agriculture István Nagy. 

A new China-Europe freight train service has been launched between Jinan, capital of Shandong province in eastern China, and Budapest, according to a report by Chinese news portal china.org.cn.