The investment record in Hungary was once again broken this year, with about HUF 2,600 billion. According to the latest data, most of the investments this time came from South Korea, from which many companies are planning new developments in our country, announced the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó on Tuesday in Szöul.

"Never before have so many investments come to Hungary through the investment promotion system in the course of a single year," said the head of the ministry. He pointed out: the proof of this is that in 2022, the investment record in our country was once again broken in the amount of HUF 2,600 billion, moreover, this does not even include the largest investment of all time, because the Chinese CATL will only start building its battery factory in Debrecen at the beginning of next year.

The minister emphasized that East Asian companies are constantly conquering the European markets, and as a result of the government's policy of the past twelve years, they often choose to invest in Hungary because of the favorable conditions.

Péter Szijjártó reported that the largest number of investments came from South Korea again this year with approximately HUF 1,100 billion, for the third time in the last four years, and these are mostly realized in the area of ​​the electric car industry. German companies are in second place, and Hungarian companies are in third place.

He underlined that South Korea's Samsung SDI and SK Innovation introduced electric battery production in Hungary, and these companies are being followed by more and more supplier companies from the East Asian country.

According to his information, since 2014 there have been thirty-nine South Korean electric car industry investments worth more than ten billion euros. "Today we can say that Hungary is not only the European champion of the transition to the electric car industry, but we can also legitimately apply for the world title," he stated.

"By the fact that the Koreans introduced electric battery production in Hungary, they created the possibility for the Hungarian economy to remain on a growth path in the long term, and thus we can now avoid the recession lurking in the European economy," he added.

During the day, the minister discussed further investments with the leaders of six South Korean companies, and announced that Samsung SDI and SK Innovation, which employ more than six thousand people in our country, plan to schedule their next investments, as do several suppliers. He reminded that South Korean companies now make up the fourth largest investor community in Hungary, and bilateral trade once again set a record, last year's peak was five billion dollars, but by the end of September this year, the turnover had increased by 22 percent. He welcomed the fact that there is now a direct flight between Budapest and Seoul, and that Korean Airlines is increasing the number of flights from two to three per week. He also mentioned that, based on the regionalization agreement reached under the roof, Hungarian food industry products can return to the South Korean market.

Source: Magyar Hírlap

Image: MTI/EPA