- Companies in Hungary show greater optimism about business prospects, according to a European Investment Bank (EIB) Group survey.
- Firms in Hungary less likely than EU average to report growth barriers even as more expect to scale back rather than boost investments.
- Hungary-based businesses cite energy-cost improvements.
Hungarian companies have become more optimistic about the business environment after their concerns eased over growth obstacles including energy costs, according to a European Investment Bank (EIB) Group survey. Firms in Hungary see fewer barriers to investments than the European Union average even as it’s too soon to predict an overall domestic rebound, new country results from the EIB Group Investment Survey (EIBIS) show.
EIBIS is an annual report based on polling of approximately 13,000 firms in all EU Member States plus a sample from the United States. Its main results were released in October 2024, showing that EU businesses lead the way in investments in climate mitigation and adaptation.
The detailed reports for individual EU countries were published today.
“European companies are making significant progress in tackling climate change and embracing digital transformation across the board. However, enhancing EU investment requires a more cohesive and integrated single market.” said EIB Chief Economist Debora Revoltella.
Key takeaways for Hungary include:
- Hungarian companies perceive fewer barriers to investment across almost all indicators including the availability of skilled labour.
- Businesses in Hungary cite energy-cost and transport-infrastructure improvements.
- More Hungary-based firms expect to reduce rather than increase their investments, pointing to a continued decline dating to end-2022.
- Over a third of Hungarian companies – 38% – focus on capacity expansion compared with an EU average of 26%.
The full country report about Hungary is available here
Survey results feed into the annual Investment Report, the flagship publication of the EIB Group’s Economics Department, gauging the investment outlook for Europe’s economy. The next Investment Report will be released on 5 March 2025 during the annual EIB Group Forum in Luxembourg.
The annual Forum brings together key stakeholders from the government, business and finance domains to exchange views on investment priorities that support Europe's policies, including industrial decarbonisation, artificial intelligence, the Capital Markets Union, security, housing and EU enlargement. The theme of this year’s event is Investing in a more sustainable and secure Europe.
Background information
The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. Built around eight core priorities, we finance investments that contribute to EU policy objectives by bolstering climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, cohesion, agriculture and bioeconomy, social infrastructure, the capital markets union, and a stronger Europe in a more peaceful and prosperous world.
The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed nearly €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high-impact projects in 2024, boosting Europe’s competitiveness and security.