Hungary’s GDP stayed unchanged in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of 2010, according to seasonally- and calendar year-adjusted figures, the Central Statistics Office (KSH) said, confirming preliminary figures in a second reading published on Wednesday.
GDP grew an unadjusted 1.0pc and a workday-adjusted 0.8pc from Q2 2009, again the same as the preliminary figures published on August 13.
Quarter-on-quarter stagnation followed a 0.6pc increase in Q1. Year-on-year growth picked up from an unadjusted 0.1pc and an adjusted 0.2pc in Q1.
Seasonally- and calendar year-adjusted calculations used by the Eurostat show that GDP rose 0.1pc yr/yr in Q2, as it did according to the first reading.
According to the first two yr/yr measures, Hungary’s GDP started to rise yr/yr in the first quarter but still declined on the year, according to seasonally- and calendar year-adjusted calculations. GDP contracted for five consecutive quarters up to the fourth quarter of last 2009 according to each calculation.
In a quarterly comparison Hungary’s GDP declined for six quarters in a row starting Q2 2008 before being flat in Q4 last year.
GDP grew 0.5pc in the first half of 2010 from the same period a year earlier according to both unadjusted and calendar year-adjusted figures but still contracted, by 0.6pc, according to seasonally- and calendar year-adjusted figures.
In 2009, Hungary’s GDP fell an unadjusted 6.3pc and contracted 6.2pc according to both calendar year-adjusted and seasonally- and calendar year-adjusted calculations.
Growth was primarily driven by the export-driven manufacturing sector, which grew 12.2pc from a low base one year earlier, after the 4.2pc increase registered in the previous quarter. On the utilisation side, export growth accelerated from 13.7pc to 16.1pc in the first two quarters of the year, while imports, similarly, grew 11.6pc and 15.4pc, in the first two quarters, respectively.
Despite the growth, Q2 GDP remains 6pc below the average growth of the year 2008, KSH notes, pointing to the effect of last year’s low base.
The manufacturing sector contributed 2.2 percentage points to Q2 GDP growth, while the construction sector deteriorated it by 0.6 percentage points, agriculture 0.3 percentage points and services by 0.1 percentage points. On the utilisation side, exports drove Q2 growth by 12.2 percentage points, which imports cut back to 1.8 percentage points in net exports. The decline in household consumption and falling investments curbed growth by 2.8 percentage points and 0.7 percentage points, respectively.
The decline accelerated in farming and the construction sector in Q2. Largely due to bad weather, added value fell 13.6pc yr/yr in farming as it was lagging behind only 4.7pc in Q1. The decline in the construction sector accelerated from 8.7pc in Q1 to 14.1pc in Q2.
Services were still 0.2pc down from one year earlier, although growth accelerated from 2.0pc in Q1 to 3.5pc in transport, warehousing, postal and telecommunications services.
Household consumption declined 4.9pc yr/yr in Q2, level with the previous quarter, and public consumption also remained its earlier level, while showing a 4.2pc increase.
Investments, which have been declining for 18 months, contracted 3.7pc in Q2 after a 4.4pc decline the previous quarter, while gross fixed-capital formation accelerated to 10.8pc in Q2 from 3.0pc in Q1 due to the rise in the growth of inventories.
According to seasonally adjusted figures, added value grew 4.2pc in Q2 from Q1 in the manufacturing sector, while performance continued declining in agriculture by 8.5pc, in the construction sector by 4.3pc and in services by 0.2pc.
The combined exports of goods and services rose 3.3pc from the previous quarter as well, while imports also rose 1.7pc, investments fell 1.0pc and household consumption declined 1.4pc.