Business leaders in Hungary are worried about the country's deteriorating investment climate
Published:
5 October 2003 y., Sunday
Business leaders in Hungary are worried about the country's deteriorating investment climate. Calls on the country's Central Bank to cut interest rates and on the government to curb state spending have so far gone unheeded.
All the Hungarians seem interested in is a major fraud and money-laundering scandal – and especially in the question: who's to blame?
The time when Hungary used to be a model scholar in the transition process to a free market economy has been over for some time. Recent governments - the last one (conservative) under Fidesz leader Viktor Orbán, and the incumbent (left-liberal) coalition led by Péter Medgyessy (no party affiliation) - seem caught up in inter-party squabbling rather than dealing with the necessary political and economic reforms prior to joining the European Union in May next year.
Central Bank governor Zsigmond Járai is becoming increasingly skeptical about the government's stated aim to join the euro zone by 2008. The Finance ministry is constantly coming up with economic growth predictions that have undergone downward adjustments – from 4 percent to 3 to 3.5, recently.
Last year's spring election, with its record turnout, demonstrated that a majority of Hungarians no longer supported Mr Orbán's us-Hungarians-we-are-the-greatest philosophy: by a slim majority voters preferred the alternative, a coalition of socialists and progressive liberals, led by the wealthy businessman-banker Mr Medgyessy.
Šaltinis:
rnw.nl
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
The financial and economic crisis has shown that reckless behaviour of banks and other financial institutions can have serious and costly consequences for Europe's economy and its people.
more »
Local services that create jobs and improve energy efficiency received a boost Thursday (2 September) when MEPs on the Industry, Research and Energy Committee approved plans for more investment.
more »
The European Commission approved the first financing decisions under the EUR 264 million 2010 allocation for the so-called Vulnerability FLEX mechanism to help the most vulnerable African, Caribbean and Pacific countries cope with the impact of the global financial crisis and economic downturn.
more »
The European Commission has today updated the list of airlines banned in the European Union to impose an operating ban on one air carrier from Ghana and to place operating restrictions on another air carrier from that country.
more »
The European Commission today approved an application from Denmark for assistance under the European Globalisation adjustment Fund (EGF).
more »
Algirdas Šemeta, EU Commissioner for Taxation, Customs Union, Anti-Fraud and Audit, will open tomorrow an international conference at the Shanghai World Expo 2010 on building bridges to facilitate trade between China and the EU.
more »
Moldova is set to receive an EU grant of up to €90 million to help it through the financial crisis, following a vote at Parliament's Committee on International Trade on Monday.
more »
Important notice: since May 2010 business surveys data are classified in accordance with an updated version of the Nomenclature of Economic Activities (NACE rev. 2) causing a potential break in series at this date.
more »
75% of Europeans think that stronger coordination of economic and financial policies among EU Member States would be effective in fighting the economic crisis, according to the Spring 2010 Eurobarometer, the bi-annual opinion poll organised by the EU.
more »
The European Commission has extended until the end of the year the liquidity support scheme for banks in Slovenia.
more »