In early 2023, inflation in Hungary accelerated to new highs, but it appears to have peaked. This is the conclusion of the analytical unit of ING Bank, quoted by the specialized Bulgarian website Investor.bg.
In January, statistics reported a 25.7% year-on-year price increase, the highest level for the past 27 years in the central European country. On a monthly basis, inflation there is accelerating by 2.3%, which is due not only to the increase in the price of goods, but also to the traditional redistribution of the burden of products in the consumer basket.
“Thus, the data is affected to a greater extent by the change in the price of food products and fuels,” ING said.
Due to the methodology, the removal of the fuel price cap did not affect the statistics for December, but was carried over to January. If there are no serious energy shocks, ING expects fuel prices to decline in the coming months, which will also slow down inflation.
Surprising to analysts is the movement of food prices, which rose by 44% on an annual basis. In December, however, the growth was 44.8%, which means a certain slowdown in price appreciation. In fact, the prices of all foods in the Hungarian consumer basket except eggs are rising. The reason is that the government has not yet removed the ceiling on the price of eggs, analysts remind.
If you want to support independent and quality journalism in “Sega”,
you can donate via PayPal
