Hungary
| Country summary | |
|---|---|
|
Capital |
Budapest |
|
Borders |
Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km, Serbia 166 km, Slovakia 676 km, Slovenia 102 km, Ukraine 103 km |
|
Government type |
parliamentary democracy |
|
Population |
9,905,596 (July 2010 est.)[1] |
|
Population growth |
-0.257% (2010 est.)[1] |
|
Life expectancy |
73.44 years[1] |
|
Unemployment |
10.8% (2009 est.)[1] |
|
51[2] | |
|
46[3] | |
|
47[4] | |
Hungary became a Christian kingdom in A.D. 1000 and for many centuries served as a bulwark against Ottoman Turkish expansion in Europe. The kingdom eventually became part of the polyglot Austro-Hungarian Empire, which collapsed during World War I. The country fell under Communist rule following World War II. In 1956, a revolt and an announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact were met with a massive military intervention by Moscow. Under the leadership of Janos KADAR in 1968, Hungary began liberalizing its economy, introducing so-called "Goulash Communism." Hungary held its first multiparty elections in 1990 and initiated a free market economy. It joined NATO in 1999 and the EU in 2004.[1]
Economical characteristics
- Currency: Forint (ISO code: HUF)
- Central bank discount rate: 6.25% (31 December 2009)[1]
- Commercial banks lending rate: 6.66% (31 December 2009)[1]
- Stock of money (M1): $30.27 billion (31 December 2009)[1]
- Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $40.7 billion (31 December 2009)[1]
Notable events:
- Banking crisis: July 1931, 1991-1995[5]
- Hyperinflation: 1945-1946
- Years in inflation: 14.1% (share of years 1918-2009 with annual inflation above 20 per cent per annum)
- Public default: 1932-1937, 1941-1967(external)[6]
Statistics
| Statistic / Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP (million USD)[7] | 48 044 | 47 885 | 53 190 | 66 502 | 84 326 | 102 076 | 110 195 | 113 006 | 138 757 | 154 668 |
| Govt. debt (% of GDP)[8] | 68.650 | 61.003 | 60.206 | 60.638 | 62.286 | 66.122 | 68.972 | 70.223 | 69.385 | 73.850 |
| Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[9] | 38.143 | 37.343 | 37.053 | 36.290 | 35.714 | 35.744 | 35.551 | 35.811 | 37.948 | 40.655 |
| Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[10] | 44.946 | 40.724 | 41.242 | 43.552 | 43.081 | 42.314 | 42.716 | 44.086 | 42.884 | 45.020 |
| Debt to revenue (years) | 1.800 | 1.634 | 1.625 | 1.671 | 1.744 | 1.850 | 1.940 | 1.961 | 1.828 | 1.817 |
References
Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 CIA - The World Factbook. "Hungary", from The World Factbook. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Heritage Foundation. "Hungary", Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Transparency International. "Hungary", Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Doing Business. "Hungary", Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff. "This Time is Different", Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-14216-6, p. 367. (The list does not claim to be complete.) Referenced 2011-07-20.
- ↑ Carmen M. Reinhart. "This Time is Different Chartbook: Country Histories on Debt, Default, and Financial Crises" (pdf), March 3, 2010, p. 57. (The list does not claim to be complete.) Referenced 2011-07-20.
- ↑ World Bank. "Hungary: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Hungary: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Hungary: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Hungary: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
Links
- Hungary on Wikipedia
- Central bank of Hungary
- Country profile (pdf) from the Enterprise Studies page (part of the The World Bank Group)
- Studies from the Library of Congress (1986-1998)
- BBC country profile
- The Czech Crisis: Part I: The Eastern European Roots by Leonard P. Liggio, September 1969
