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Thursday Could Be Key For Future of Hungary EU Funding

HUNGARY
  • A press conference due this morning at European Parliament could be key for the chances of Hungary securing EU recovery funding by year-end. At 0930GMT / 1030CET today, the lead MEPs for the rule of law conditionality regulation will comment on Hungary’s progress in addressing what critics have called systemic breaches of EU rule of law standards (Live link here ).
  • The press conference follows the freezing of €7.5bln of EU funding for Hungary on the 18th September, with lawmakers citing corruption and public procurement concerns back in April. Since then, Hungarian parliament has rushed the passage of 17 pieces of legislation through parliament aimed at securing the frozen funds.
  • The Commission had previously called the measures a “step in the right direction”, with Saturday the deadline for Hungary to provide sufficient evidence of their progress.
  • The press conference comes ahead of another potential flashpoint next week, as the European Commission are set to meet on November 22nd to decide whether to adopt Hungary's COVID-19 recovery plan - the only remaining EU-27 member not to have received the endorsement.
  • Markets continue to view any securing of EU funding as a HUF positive development. Natwest Markets last week said Hungary's persistent fiscal deficit, high energy import costs and dwindling FX reserves mean it has all the incentives to do everything possible to secure the funding, and any EU acknowledgement of the progress made would support the currency going forward.

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