"The center of gravity of the world economy is shifting to the East," writes Levente Horváth, director of the Eurasia Center.Continue reading
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán received Tian Guoli, Chairman of the China Construction Bank (CCB), and a delegation at the Carmelite Monastery on Thursday, Bertalan Havasi, head of the Prime Minister’s Press Office, told MTI.
At Thursday’s working lunch, which was attended by the prime minister and several government ministers, including Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, Finance Minister Mihály Varga, Economic Development Minister Márton Nagy, and Cultural and Innovation Minister János Csák, the opening of the bank’s Budapest office was welcomed.
It was said that
China and Hungary have a long history of friendship. The parties expect the new branch to contribute to the further expansion of Sino-Hungarian economic, financial, and trade relations.
CCB, the world’s second largest credit institution by assets, opened its branch in Hungary on Wednesday. At the opening ceremony, Minister of Economic Development Márton Nagy congratulated the branch, which he hopes will open the way for further development. China Construction Bank will help Hungarian companies to enter the Chinese market and Chinese investments to enter Hungary, he added.
Photo: Twitter
Nagy stressed that Chinese-Hungarian relations are primarily defined by peace and mutual respect. He added that compared to 2010, there are already one and a half times more Chinese citizens living in peace in Hungary, about 18,000, which is a sign of strengthening trust. China will be a major player in the world economy for a long time to come, having quickly recovered from the epidemic crisis, with growth of 6.4 percent this year. This also means that China will remain a major driver of the world economy, he said.
China accounts for more than 4 percent of Hungary’s total foreign trade and is the country’s ninth most important trading partner and the largest outside Europe.
Last year, China was the tenth largest foreign investor in Hungary. Chinese companies have already invested 144 billion forints (EUR 380 million) in the country with Hungarian state support, the minister highlighted.
Three of the four largest credit institutions in the world are already present in Hungary, he pointed out. In an economic situation hit by war and sanctions, resources and capital are needed; without lending there can be no economic growth, and China Construction Bank is counting on this, Nagy added.
Tian Guoli, Chairman of the CCB, stressed that the friendship between China and Hungary has a long history, and is strong and deep.
They expect the financial institution to contribute to the further expansion of China-Hungary economic, financial, and trade relations.
The establishment of CCB’s branch in Hungary will further promote financial cooperation between the two countries and provide higher quality financial services for China-Hungary economic and trade cooperation.
They plan to create a fintech lab to develop financial technology innovations. It was also announced that the branch will donate HUF 20 million (EUR 52,800) to the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual Primary and Secondary School to build workshops for the school and to support children’s summer camp activities.
At the end of last year, the CCB Group had a balance sheet total of RMB 34.60 trillion (1 RMB equals 49.93 forints), net profit of RMB 323.166 billion, operating income of RMB 822.473 billion, a capital adequacy ratio of 18.42 percent, and a non-performing loan ratio of 1.38 percent. In recent years, CCB has already covered 30 countries and regions, building a global financial services network that operates across time zones, geographical areas, multiple currencies and available 24 hours a day.
Featured photo via MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán
