One of the main drivers of domestic retail is the pharmaceutical trade

By: Trademagazin Date: 2024. 11. 26. 09:44

The pharmaceutical industry is a very important industry in the Hungarian economy, emphasized Minister of National Economy Márton Nagy in his opening speech at the conference organized by the Hungarian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ National Association (Magyosz) on Tuesday entitled “The Competitiveness of the European and Hungarian Pharmaceutical Industries”.

The minister asked the players in the pharmaceutical industry to contribute to ensuring that the growth of the Hungarian economy is above 3 percent next year.

He emphasized that they are striving for a new alliance with the entrepreneurial sector, including pharmaceutical manufacturers, so that the Hungarian economic growth will be above 3 percent next year.

In his speech, Márton Nagy pointed out that the Hungarian economy is exposed to external economic conditions. As an example, he mentioned that the dynamics of Hungarian exports have declined due to the weakness of the German economy. At the same time, the growth of the Hungarian economy in the fourth quarter of this year may be 0.7 percent on an annual basis.

The Minister of National Economy said that according to expectations, the growth of the Hungarian GDP next year could be between 3-3.5 percent, the government says 3.4 percent.

Everyone considers the growth of the Hungarian economy around 3 percent next year to be realistic, but that is why action must be taken, he stated.

Márton Nagy spoke in detail about the recovery of consumption in Hungary, and indicated that retail turnover may have expanded significantly in October compared to September.

He mentioned that domestic retail is mainly driven by e-commerce, the turnover of food products, and the pharmaceutical trade. He indicated that there is also a turnaround in car sales, with the growth of around 10 percent for used cars and 5.4 percent for new cars.

The consumption habits of the Hungarian population are changing, they are using more and more services, and the share of foreign spending is also increasing, the latter being driven by the growth of e-commerce and travel, the minister pointed out.

The minister believes that since Hungarian industry is significantly exposed to external sales, the processing industry is “suffering”, and the pharmaceutical industry is not in a good state on the production side either. While pharmaceutical demand is picking up, production is “weak”, mainly due to exports. Domestic pharmaceutical production can only ramp up if exports also start, he added.