Prosperity index

According to the December 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment strengthened by 0.4 index points, and business economic expectations weakened by 0.2 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, improved to -16.0, while the business index weakened to -15.2. In the December survey, the most positive change in household sentiment was related to job stability. Businesses’ largest change was in their ability to enforce prices. Although a weaker capacity to raise prices has a negative impact on the business prosperity index through corporate profitability, it is positive for the economy as a whole because of contained inflation.

According to the November 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment strengthened by 2.1 index points, and business economic expectations improved by 0.5 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -16.5, while the business index to -14.9. In the November survey, the most positive change in household sentiment was towards the future path of inflation. And among businesses, the perception of Hungary’s future competitiveness has improved the most.

According to the October 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment weakened by 1.8 index points, while business economic expectations improved by 0.7 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, dropped to -18.6, while the business index strengthened to -15.4. In the October survey, the most positive change in household sentiment was regarding the future of the Hungarian economy, while businesses showed a positive shift in their assessment of product price changes over the past year.

According to the September 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment improved by 1.5 index points, while business economic expectations fell by 0.5 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -16.9, while the business index weakened to -16.1. In the September survey, the most positive change in household sentiment was regarding larger purchases in the next year. From August to September, the biggest change for business is that they expect their export activities to increase in volume in the future.

According to the August 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment deteriorated by 3.7 index points, while business economic expectations fell by 0.3 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, weakened to -18.3, while the business index to -15.6. The August survey showed that household sentiment changed most as regards the negative changes in Hungary’s economic situation over the next year. In August, the largest month-on-month change for companies was related to more moderate price changes for their products in the past.

According to the July 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment deteriorated by 2.7 index points, while business economic expectations fell by 3.0 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, weakened to -14.6, while the business index to -15.3. In the July survey, the main change in households’ perceptions was related to the change in unemployment in Hungary over the past year. In July, the biggest negative change for businesses in one month was related to the future outlook for the Hungarian economy.

According to the June 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment improved significantly, by 2.7 index points, while business economic expectations improved by 1.2 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -11.9, while the business index strengthened to -12.4. In the June survey, households were particularly positive about the economic outlook for the country over the next year. As regards businesses, the biggest positive change from May to June was in their profit outlook for the next year.

According to the May 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment improved by 1.9 index points, while business economic expectations deteriorated by 1.3 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -14.5, while the business index weakened to -13.5. The May survey shows that households’ perception of their own financial situation has improved significantly. Meanwhile, the largest positive change from April to May was measured in terms of the reduction in the price increases of businesses over the past year.

According to the April 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment deteriorated by 1.6 index points, while business economic expectations improved by 0.7 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, weakened to -16.4, while the business index strengthened to -12.2. A marked positive change in the April survey is that households’ inflation perceptions are steadily converging towards the actual rate, which is now within the central bank’s inflation target range. For businesses, the biggest positive change from March to April was in profits over the past year.

According to the March 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment deteriorated by 1.9 index points, while business economic expectations decreased by 1.1 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, weakened to -14.8, while the business index to -12.9. The March survey shows a marked positive change in that households are less worried about job losses in the next six months than a month earlier. In the business sector, the largest negative change from February to March was in expectations for future exchange rate movements.

According to the February 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment deteriorated by 1.0 index points, while business economic expectations decreased by 0.1 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, weakened to -12.9, while the business index to -11.8. A marked positive change seen in the February survey is that people have revised down their expectations for future inflation. At the same time, the biggest change for companies, from January to February, was the change in the price of their products over the past year.

According to the January 2024 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment improved by 3.3 index points, while business economic expectations decreased by 1.0 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -11.9, while the business index weakened to -11.7. The indices show a significant improvement over a longer horizon: compared to December 2022, the household index increased by 18.0 index points and the corporate index by 10.2 index points. The January survey showed a marked positive change, with households saying they had bought more goods and services in the past year than a year earlier. And companies were positive about their future investment plans.

According to the December 2023 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, household economic sentiment improved by 3.7 index points and business economic expectations by 1.9 index points from the previous month. Thus, the household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, strengthened to -15.2, while the business index strengthened to -10.7. The indices show a significant improvement over a longer horizon as well: compared to December 2022, the household index increased by 14.7 index points and the corporate index by 11.2 index points. The December survey reveals the biggest positive shift in households’ inflation expectations, while businesses were most positive about the country’s overall economic situation over the past year.

According to the November 2023 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, the sense of prosperity among households did not change, while the sense of prosperity among businesses improved significantly. The household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, dropped from -18.8 to -18.9, while the business index improved from -15.5 to -12.6. Over a longer horizon, the indices show a significant improvement: compared to November 2022, the household index increased by 7.5 index points and the corporate index by 8.1 index points. The prosperity index remained in negative territory, still determined by the Russia-Ukraine war, a declining but still higher inflation environment and the uncertainty caused by economic sanctions. A major improvement in the sense of prosperity will only be possible if the war ends, inflation continues to fall, the interest rate environment becomes more favourable and energy markets see sustained low prices.

The October 2023 survey of Századvég Konjunktúrakutató shows that both households’ and businesses’ sense of prosperity has improved. The household index, measured on a scale of -100 to +100, improved from -23.0 to -18.8, while the business index improved from -17.5 to -15.5. The prosperity index remained in negative territory, still determined by the Russia-Ukraine war, the still higher inflation environment and the uncertainty caused by economic sanctions. A major improvement in the sense of prosperity will only be possible if the war ends, inflation continues to fall, the interest rate environment becomes more favourable and energy markets see sustained low prices.