MNI NBH Preview - July 2023: Hawkishness to Prevail?
Analysts are undecided over whether the NBH will keep rates unchanged at 7% or cut by an additional 25bps.
Executive Summary:
- The National Bank of Hungary is expected act in-line with its hawkish messaging and keep rates unchanged at 7% in July, though substantial risk of a 25bp easing move is noted.
- Despite headline inflation coming in below expectations in June, Deputy Governor Virag said the central bank will not overreact to a single positive data-point - though he also stated that a rate cut will be considered this month.
- Among sell-side, expectations are tilted toward a further 25bp rate cut. According to a Bloomberg survey, 16 analysts foresee a 25bp cut whereas 9 are expecting an unchanged decision.
See our full preview, with a summary of sell-side analyst views, here:
In June, Hungary’s consumer prices rose 3.7% Y/Y (Est: +3.9%) versus +4.0% in May, with prices unchanged month-on-month (Est: +0.2%) compared to -0.1% prior. However, the stronger-than-expected repricing of some core items led to an upside surprise in the core figure (printing at +4.1% Y/Y), suggesting underlying inflation is still running at levels inconsistent with additional easing.
Indeed, Deputy Governor Virag noted the following recently: "The better-than-expected inflation data and improving global risk sentiment in recent weeks do not change the assessment of the monetary policy stance but may allow earlier implementation of interest rate cuts. The NBH doesn’t overreact to positive data coming in: neither on domestic inflation nor on global risk appetite." The comment offers the largest hint that the NBH will stand pat at this juncture.