Published on: 29 November 2019

GDP rises by 5.0%

The volume of gross domestic product was 5.0% higher in Hungary in the 3rd quarter of 2019 than in the corresponding period of the previous year. The main contributors to the growth were industry, construction and market-based services. According to seasonally and calendar adjusted and reconciled data the performance of the economy was up by 4.8% compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year and by 1.1% compared to the previous quarter. In the 1st–3rd quarters of 2019, gross domestic product rose by 5.1%.

In the 3rd quarter of 2019 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year:

The volume of GDP was up by 5.0%. Compared with the 3rd-quarter figure issued in the flash estimate, the raw volume index in the second estimate was unchanged.

Production approach:

The performance of industry went up by 7.6%, within which that of manufacturing by 8.1% compared to the same period of the previous year. Among manufacturing branches, the largest contributors to the growth of industry were the manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers and the manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products. The value added of construction increased by 18%, within which the value added grew markedly in all the branches. The performance of agriculture lessened by 1.6% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.

Table 1: Volume indices of production of gross domestic product (GDP)

(corresponding period of previous year = 100.0%)

NACE Industry 2018 2019
quarter
III IV I II III
AAgriculture, forestry and fishing103.4107.997.699.098.4
B–EManufacturing, mining and quarrying and other industry100.1101.7106.1104.0107.6
COf which: manufacturing99.7101.8106.0103.2108.1
FConstruction124.1116.5146.7127.4118.1
G–TServices, total, of which:106.0105.8103.7104.4103.9
G+IWholesale and retail trade and accommodation and food service activities112.8112.6106.2107.8108.7
HTransportation and storage102.1101.2104.0106.2106.5
JInformation and communication106.2111.2106.5105.9106.4
KFinancial and insurance activities104.3103.8103.1103.9104.1
LReal estate activities103.7103.3103.2103.7103.0
M–NProfessional, scientific, technical and administrative activities112.3112.1107.5106.8105.2
O–QPublic administration, education and health and social work activities101.299.699.399.998.6
R–TArts, entertainment and other services101.7101.9103.3102.6101.5
GDP, total (at purchasers’ prices)105.3105.3105.3104.9105.0

The gross value added of services was up by 3.9% in total, the highest growth (8.7%) was reached by wholesale and retail trade and accommodation and food service activities. The value added of information and communication rose by 6.4% and that of professional, scientific, technical and administrative activities by 5.2%, at a more moderate rate compared to earlier quarters. The performance of financial and insurance activities went up by 4.1%. The total value added of public administration, education and health decreased by 1.4%.

Services contributed by 2.1 percentage points, industry by 1.5 percentage points and construction by 1.0 percentage point to the 5.0% rise of gross domestic product in the 3rd quarter of 2019. The most significant contribution (1.0 percentage point) within services was observed for wholesale and retail trade and accommodation and food service activities.

Expenditure approach:

The actual final consumption of households increased by 4.2% compared to the same period of the previous year. Household final consumption expenditure, representing the largest proportion of the components of the actual final consumption of households, rose by 5.0%. The (domestic) consumption expenditure of households realised on the territory of Hungary was 5.4% higher than a year earlier. Within this, a higher-than-average growth was recorded in the volume of domestic consumption expenditure on durable goods (e.g. passenger cars, furniture, large electric household appliances: 18%) and semi-durable goods (e.g. clothing, small household appliances, parts for vehicles: 5.9%), compared with a lower-than-average rise for non-durable goods (e.g. food, alcoholic beverages, tobacco, electricity, gas and other fuels, water supply, medicine: 4.5%) as well as services (4.5%).

The volume of social transfers in kind from the government grew by 1.0% and that of the actual final consumption of the government by 2.2%. The volume of social transfers in kind from non-profit institutions serving households (NPISHs) was up by 0.6%.

As a result of the above trends, actual final consumption became 3.9% higher.

Gross fixed capital formation went on increasing substantially, it was 16% higher in the 3rd quarter than in the corresponding period of the previous year. The volume of investments in construction and in machinery and equipment both went up, the former at a higher rate. In the industries with the largest weight in total investments (manufacturing, transportation and storage and real estate activities) the volume of investments rose considerably.

Gross capital formation increased by 3.7% compared to one year earlier.

As a result of the trends of consumption and capital formation, domestic use as a whole became 4.1% higher in the 3rd quarter.

Table 2: Volume indices of final use of gross domestic product (GDP)

(corresponding period of previous year = 100.0%)

Items of use 2018 2019
quarter
III IV I II III
Household final consumption expenditure104.9104.5104.9104.8105.0
Social transfers in kind from government99.399.4102.5103.3101.0
Social transfers in kind from NPISHs100.0101.2109.4108.8100.6
Actual final consumption of households103.7103.5104.6104.7104.2
Actual final consumption of government102.195.598.296.3102.2
Actual final consumption, total103.5102.3103.7103.5103.9
Gross fixed capital formation120.7117.8124.9117.8116.1
Changes in inventoriesa)xxxxx
Acquisitions less disposals of valuablesa)xxxxx
Gross capital formation, total125.9120.7109.4115.7103.7
Domestic use, total109.8107.1104.7106.5104.1
Exports, of which:101.2104.9107.4102.8108.3
Exports of goods99.5105.3108.2102.9108.7
Exports of services106.7103.1104.2102.4107.2
Imports, of which:106.1107.1106.8104.3107.4
Imports of goods105.5108.6107.8105.1108.5
Imports of services108.8100.0101.7100.2102.7
External balance of goods and servicesa)xxxxx
Gross domestic product (GDP), total105.3105.3105.3104.9105.0

a) For these items the volume index is not applicable.

In the external trade of the national economy a surplus of 451 billion forints – larger than a year earlier – was generated at current prices. The volume increase of exports (8.3%) exceeded that of imports (7.4%). In trade in goods, exports grew by 8.7% and imports by 8.5%. Within the external trade of the national economy, the exports of services (including tourism) rose by 7.2% and their imports by 2.7% compared to a year earlier.

Actual final consumption contributed by 2.5 percentage points, gross capital formation by 1.6 percentage points and the balance of external trade as a whole by 0.9 percentage point to the 5.0% growth of gross domestic product in the 3rd quarter of 2019.

In the 3rd quarter of 2019 compared to the previous quarter, based on seasonally and calendar adjusted and reconciled data:

The performance of the economy went up by 1.1%.

From the production approach, gross value added grew by 1.9% in industry, by 2.6% in construction and by 0.8% in services.

From the expenditure approach, household final consumption expenditure increased by 1.2% and the actual final consumption of the government by 0.9%, while the volume of social transfers in kind from the government was unchanged out of the components of actual final consumption. Gross fixed capital formation was up by 3.9%. In external trade, exports rose by 2.4% and imports by 2.6%.