Budapest, 27 November 2025 – “Monitoring the economic situation and companies’ expectations is critically important to the Hungarian central bank and the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry,” according to MNB Governor Mihály Varga, speaking at the press conference presenting the results of the MNB-MKIK Business Survey. He explained that the survey, conducted using a new methodology, provided a more direct and accurate picture of the situation and prospects of companies than previously.
Governor Varga recalled that one significant component of the MNB’s philosophy was that professional knowledge should also help the real economy of Hungary directly, and the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MKIK) provided effective assistance to this end. According to Varga, this was reflected in the jointly conducted survey, which was part of the five-point cooperation agreement concluded between the two institutions in April. As he had previously said, the results were promising, as they were able to reach 1,500 enterprises through the joint economic survey. The Governor pointed out that the development of the MNB-MKIK corporate economic index showed close alignment with the annual change in quarterly GDP and thus reflected real economic trends well. While the index had improved over the past two months, it still pointed to a subdued economic situation overall. Varga emphasised that recent results showed that although corporations’ current situational assessment remained cautious, their expectations for the future were more favourable, adding that this could serve as a basis for economic developments in the period ahead. He explained that the survey provided important feedback for economic policy and the corporate sectors, as it offered an opportunity to evaluate their own situation, broken down by size and industry. This was evidenced by companies’ assessment that weak demand, high energy prices and high costs, which remain due to inflation, were typically constraints to their activities. Based on the detailed answers given by the businesses, adjustment trends within the economy and the development of the constraints of cost and demand could be monitored more precisely, according to MNB Governor Varga.