Improving efficiency via digitalization may offset negative factors such as the drying up of EU funding, and may prevent a significant decline in GDP growth in Hungary, András Somkuti, president of the Docler Group and CEO of e-signature specialist Netlock, says in a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.

In 2017, the proportion of pensioners at risk of poverty in the European Union was estimated to be 14.2%, slightly above the figure of 13.8% in 2016. The proportion of Hungarian pensioners at risk of poverty stood at 9.1% in 2017, one of the lowest rates in the EU. 

IKEA Hungaryʼs net revenues rose 23.3% to HUF 75.5 billion in its business year ending August 31, 2018, the Swedish home furnishings company told state news agency MTI Wednesday.

The Hungarian-French Chamber of Commerce, with the cooperation of the Swedish, German, and British chambers, as well as the Danish Business Club, has announced a business lunch on February 12 with Levente Magyar, minister of state for parliamentary affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Hungary initiated an infringement procedure against Austria on Tuesday over changes introduced by the government in Vienna to the country’s child benefit system, according to a report by Hungarian news agency MTI. 

French-owned veterinary health company Ceva-Phylaxia Oltóanyagtermelő will spend some HUF 8.2 billion to build a vaccine plant and R&D base in Monor, on the outskirts of Budapest, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó announced on Tuesday. 

Output of Hungaryʼs construction sector climbed 27.3% year-on-year in November, according to raw data released by the Central Statistical Office (KSH) on Tuesday. Output grew in both main groups of construction: in the construction of buildings by 17.8%, and in civil engineering works by 40.2%. 

The Government Debt Management Agency (ÁKK) sold HUF 30.0 billion of discount three-month T-bills at auction on Tuesday, in line with the original offer, state news wire MTI reported.

Design Terminal has announced the opening of the application process for its spring mentoring program, looking for startups that are profit-oriented yet offer services beneficial to society, says a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.

A digital accident statement application developed by the Association of Hungarian Insurance Companies (MABISZ) has been downloaded more than 62,000 times since its launch a week ago, MABISZ said on Tuesday, according to a report by state news wire MTI.

Hungarian-owned CEE real estate developer the Futureal Group is selling its residential portfolio in Kaiserslautern, SW Germany, to a Switzerland-listed property firm. Futureal intends to reinvest the acquired financial resources from the deal into more than 50 ongoing projects in Europe, the company told the Budapest Business Journal.

Within the framework of the DiscoverEU program, more than 14,500 18-year-old EU citizens will be able to explore Europe this year after winning month-long travel passes, according to a press release on the European Commissionʼs website.

László Szíjj, the owner of construction company Duna Aszfalt, has acquired a 32.9% stake in MKB Bank that was indirectly owned by BanKonzult Pénzügyi és Gazdasági Tanácsadó, a company owned by Tamás Szemerey, who also owns NHB Growth Credit Bank, state news agency MTI reported MKB as saying late Monday.

As of March and July this year, low-cost airline Wizz Air will start operating eight new routes from Macedonia’s capital of Skopje and Ohrid Airports, respectively, the company announced on Monday after signing a contract with the government’s representatives, according to Worldairlinenews.com.

German airline Lufthansa has cancelled a number of its Budapest flights scheduled for Tuesday because of a strike by security staff at German airports, according to a report by state news agency MTI.

The “We are Europe” initiative, which aims to support the development and work of civil society organizations across Europe, is organizing a public political event entitled “We are Europe Citizens’ Agora”, according to a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjártó met for talks with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei in Minsk on Monday, discussing several projects involving Hungarian companies, according to a report by state news wire MTI.

Dentons has advised Vinci Airports on the 25-year PPP concession in respect of Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla Airport, covering the airportʼs financing, operation, maintenance, and extension, with the planned upgrades expected to raise capacity from 5.3 million passengers per year in 2017 to more than 14 million passengers by 2043, the concessionʼs scheduled end. 

Futureal Groupʼs residential developer Cordia has announced the conclusion of loans worth HUF 16.3 billion with OTP Bank and Takarékbank, for the financing of five Budapest residential projects, the company told the Budapest Business Journal.

The finance minister has announced the launch of another state-sponsored program to license drivers of commercial vehicles, according to a report by state news wire MTI.