Fiscal Council head: Hungary could meet criteria for euro entry by end-2024

Whereas inflation was 25.4 percent in February, it could drop to around 3 percent by summer 2024, Arpad Kovacs told the assembly of the Fejer County Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Szekesfehervar, in central Hungary. Public debt relative to GDP will fall well below 70 percent by the end of next year, and the budget deficit is expected to be around 2.9 percent, he added.

GDP growth is projected to be around 1 percent this year, before rising to 3.5-4 percent in 2024, Kovacs said. Inflation will fall below 10 percent by the end of this year, and forecasts indicate a significantly better inflationary environment next year, he added.

Hungary ranks at the top of the bottom third of European Union countries in terms of GDP per capita, ahead of Portugal and Slovakia, among others, and could move into the midfield by 2029, Kovacs said.

Hungary’s nominal GDP has been growing since 2020, and not just because of inflation and a rise in output, he said, adding that GDP was set to reach 78,000 billion forints (EUR 207.8bn) this year.