Within its inflation-targeting framework, the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB) has frequently adjusted its monetary operations. This has raised questions about their internal consistency, appropriateness, and effectiveness. A broader assessment, implying a comparison to a counterfactual, is outside the...

Though high and rising inflation has been a challenge for most economies across Europe in 2022 and into 2023, it has accelerated in Hungary to the highest level in Europe. This paper examines how and why Hungary reached historically high inflation. It draws on an augmented Phillips Curve to...

This Selected Issues paper examines how and why Hungary reached historically high inflation. Particular attention is placed on cross-country comparisons to understand where Hungary may stand out, and on domestic drivers that could help explain stronger inflationary pressure in Hungary. Following...

The 2022 Article IV Consultation with Hungary highlights that while the economy was recovering from the coronavirus disease-crisis, a succession of shocks and loose fiscal policy intensified inflation and fueled a large external deficit. Appropriately, the central bank significantly tightened...

In 2022, energy prices in the European Union reached record highs, accompanied by a significant increase in fuel prices. In response, the Hungarian government imposed a price cap on retail fuel prices from November 15, 2021 to December 6, 2022. This study empirically examines the effect of the...

Impacts of EU Direct Payments on Agricultural Enterprises in HungaryDirect payments are a controversial issue in the accession negotiations. While the EU proposes reduced payments the accession countries claim that they should be equally treated as the present EU members.The present study, based...

A structural market model is estimated to analyse the impact of market power on resource allocation in the German and Hungarian pork markets. The regression analyses suggest that market power exists, although on a relatively low level. Moreover, the estimates show that processors might pursue...