The results of the latest quarterly business climate survey reveal favourable economic conditions compared to the previous quarter: the IEER Quarterly Business Climate Index increased from 21 to 32 points. This result indicates that following the decline observed in April 2017, the Business Climate Index returned to the value of around 30 points that had characterised it since January 2016. (The Business Climate Index was 34 points in the same period of the previous year.)

Contents:

• Student Mobility from the Best High Schools in Hungary to Foreign Universities – 2017
• President Macron’s Economic Policy
• International trends

The IEER analysis examines the plans for higher education of students from the best high schools in Budapest, Pest and Győr-Moson-Sopron Counties. The results show that every tenth student out of all the students of the best high schools submits their application to a foreign higher educational institution. Most of these students plan to reside in their chosen city not only for the duration of their higher education, but for a longer term.

Contents:

• Corporate reactions to the raise of the minimum wage and the guaranteed minimum wage

• Characteristics of the Russian economy

• International trends

This brief analysis is to study what steps national corporations have already taken or they plan to take in 2017 concerning minimum wage raise and the increased guaranteed minimum wage for the skilled workforce in 2017. In the analysis eight taken or due steps in 2017 will be examined: (1) to avoid wage disparity those earning beyond the level of minimum wage will have a wage increase: (2) planned staff recruitment will be cancelled; (3) there will be layoffs; (4) planned investments will be postponed; (5) the scope of activity and tasks of those employees affected by the wage increase will be modified; (6) the affected employees’ employment will become part-time employment; (7) the benefits of the affected employees will be cut; (8) variable pay/at-risk pay will be decreased (bonuses, on-target earnings).

This study used the research conducted in April 2017 on corporate prosperity by HCCI (Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry) IEER (Institute for Economic and Enterprise Research); during this research more than 3200 corporate leaders provided answers to the research questionnaire.

Contents:

• Students from the Visegrad Group at Austrian, German and British universities – 2002-2016
• Social mobility of Hungary among the EU Member States
• International trends

The results of the latest quarterly business climate survey reveal less favourable economic conditions compared to the previous quarter: the IEER Quarterly Business Climate decreased from 31 to 21 points. It means that the enterprises detect a turning point: we received at least 30 points in each quarter since January 2016, 21 points were measured for the last time in July 2015. (The Business Climate Index was 33 points in the same period of the previous year.)

This decline is mainly due to the fact that businesses are evaluating the current profitability, stock order, business situation, and past six-month production levels more negatively than in January. In addition, expectations on the development of investments have become more pessimistic.

The Uncertainty Index is at a current level of 35 points, which is slightly lower than in the previous quarter (it was 36 points in January 2017). The value of the Uncertainty Index indicates that the current trend is not uniform within the private sector, and that it will continue to be confined to one part of the economy and will not be felt by all companies.

In this brief analysis, the trends in the number of Hungarian students studying abroad at higher educational institutions are examined by using international statistical data. Results show that there were about 7500 Hungarian students participating in BA and Ma programmes at foreign colleges and universities both in 2014 and in 2015. Comparing the number of students participating in BA courses in Hungary to the number of students studying abroad it can be seen that not too many of them choose a foreign institution, but at the level of master’s programmes more students decide to quit the Hungarian higher educational system.

This result could be interpreted as a deficiency in the Hungarian higher educational system, but at the same time it can be a sign of the high competitiveness of the Hungarian students internationally.

Contents:

• Corporate credits in Hungary, 2012-2016
• OECD recommendations for Hungarian economic growth
• International trends