Hungarian think tank Oeconomus Economic Research Foundation presented this year’s Oeco-Index on Wednesday. According to the objective economic and development indicator, Hungary ranks 18th in the European Union and 35th globally, classifying it as a highly developed country. Hungary outperformed EU member states such as Romania, Poland, Latvia, Slovakia, and Italy, as well as major global economic powers such as China and Russia.
‘The foundations of the Hungarian economy have never been this strong in the past 35 years,’ Chairman of the Board of Oeconomus Péter Törcsi stated during a press event presenting the 2025 index. Describing the methodology behind the Oeco-Index—first introduced last year—Törcsi explained that they used 25 subindicators, mainly covering economic, social, and political dimensions. He also emphasized that the Oeco-Index is based on data from the World Bank, which provides updated statistics with a two-year delay, meaning the current index reflects the situation as of 2023.
A Complex and Objective Picture
In the index, economic and social factors dominate (at 50 per cent and 40 per cent respectively), while mainly perception-based political indicators account for 10 per cent. ‘We didn’t want to engage in the political witch hunt Hungary has faced over the past decade in connection with such indexes,’ Törcsi noted, adding that their methodology offers a more objective analysis of economic performance and development than most similar global indexes.
The index uses GNI per capita instead of GDP per capita. Among the 25 subindicators are metrics such as the value added of different economic sectors as a percentage of GDP, R&D spending as a percentage of GDP, literacy rate, and internet penetration in the respective country.
Navigating through Crises
According to the think tank’s report, while 2022 was marked by economic problems stemming from the energy crisis and inflation shock, these became structural issues in 2023. ‘In 2023, the world not only adapted to the shock of 2022 but also had to face its long-term consequences: economic growth slowed, while social tensions and political instability increased.’
In this difficult global context, the Hungarian economy faced a myriad of challenges, yet managed to retain its classification as a highly developed country and even improve its regional standing. Soaring inflation, frozen EU funds, and a strict interest rate policy negatively affected domestic consumption and investment; retail sales declined by almost 8 per cent. Industrial production and services also shrank, with agriculture being the only sector to show a surge in growth.
The fact that Hungary maintained its position in the rankings despite these difficulties not only reflects the economy’s crisis resilience, but also signals that such challenges are present internationally.
Some Interesting Findings
One of the most striking findings of the index is that Hungary ranks ahead of Italy—highlighting the complex picture the Oeco-Index offers of national economies. According to Director of Research Szabolcs Pásztor, Hungary’s better performance is attributable to factors such as the added value of services, agriculture, and manufacturing; the openness of external trade; internet penetration; literacy; and the number of mobile phones per capita—all of which were taken into account.
The experts also pointed out that in the coming years, certain countries in regions such as East Asia and the Persian Gulf are likely to close the gap—or even overtake European nations in the ranking. ‘This is not because living standards in European countries will decline, but because these regions will develop more dynamically,’ Pásztor stressed.
‘While EU membership and participation in the common market offer many significant advantages, they also come with limitations’
Addressing recent developments in international trade, particularly the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump, Törcsi noted that while EU membership and participation in the common market offer many significant advantages, they also come with limitations. ‘Regarding tariffs, Hungary has far less room to manoeuvre because it is part of the EU,’ he remarked.
Törcsi added that certain EU-specific constraints—stemming mainly from the direction set by Nordic and Benelux countries, as well as the Union’s core founding states—are also holding Hungary’s economic development back. ‘Very strong bureaucracy, very strong ideology, very little realism,’ he summarised the problems with the EU’s current trajectory.
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