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Hungary
Background:
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Hungary became a Christian kingdom
in A.D. 1000 and for many centuries served as a bulwark against Ottoman
Turkish expansion in Europe. The kingdom eventually became part of the
polyglot Austro-Hungarian Empire, which collapsed during World War I.
The country fell under Communist rule following World War II. In 1956, a
revolt and an announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact were met with a
massive military intervention by Moscow. Under the leadership of Janos
KADAR in 1968, Hungary began liberalizing its economy, introducing
so-called "Goulash Communism." Hungary held its first multiparty
elections in 1990 and initiated a free market economy. It joined NATO in
1999 and the EU in 2004.
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Location:
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Central Europe, northwest of
Romania
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Geographic coordinates:
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47 00 N, 20 00 E
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Map references:
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Europe
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Area:
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total: 93,028
sq km
09
land:
89,608 sq km
water:
3,420 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than
Indiana
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Land boundaries:
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total: 2,185
km
border countries:
Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km,
Serbia 166 km, Slovakia 676 km, Slovenia 102 km, Ukraine 103 km
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked)
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked)
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Climate:
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Current Weather
temperate; cold, cloudy,
humid winters; warm summers
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Terrain:
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mostly flat to rolling
plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Tisza
River 78 m
highest point:
Kekes 1,014 m
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Natural resources:
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bauxite, coal, natural
gas, fertile soils, arable land
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Land use:
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arable land: 49.58%
permanent crops:
2.06%
other:
48.36% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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2,300 sq km (2003)
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Total
renewable water resources:
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120 cu km (2005)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 21.03
cu km/yr (9%/59%/32%)
per capita:
2,082 cu m/yr (2001)
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Environment - current issues:
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the upgrading of
Hungary's standards in waste management, energy efficiency, and air,
soil, and water pollution to meet EU requirements will require large
investments
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Air
Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent
Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94,
Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; strategic
location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan
Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin; the
north-south flowing Duna (Danube) and Tisza Rivers divide the country
into three large regions
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Population:
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9,880,059 (July 2010 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 14.8%
(male 753,733/female 710,482)
15-64 years:
69.2% (male 3,376,391/female 3,462,522)
65 years and over:
16% (male 571,877/female 1,005,054) (2010 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 39.7
years
male:
37.5 years
female:
42.2 years (2010 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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-0.26% (2010 est.)
17
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Birth rate:
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9.43 births/1,000
population (2010 est.)
03
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Death rate:
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12.9 deaths/1,000
population (July 2010 est.)
7
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Net migration rate:
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0.87 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53
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Urbanization:
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urban population: 68%
of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization:
0.3% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.062
male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.57 male(s)/female
total population:
0.91 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 7.7
deaths/1,000 live births
64
male:
8.4 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
6.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 73.69
years
09
male:
69.53 years
female:
78.11 years (2010 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.36 children born/woman
(2010 est.)
03
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.1% (2007 est.)
23
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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3,300 (2007 est.)
30
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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fewer than 100 (2001
est.)
44
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Major
infectious diseases:
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degree of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A
vectorborne diseases:
tickborne encephalitis (2009)
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Nationality:
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noun: Hungarian(s)
adjective:
Hungarian
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Ethnic groups:
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Hungarian 92.3%, Roma
1.9%, other or unknown 5.8% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic 51.9%,
Calvinist 15.9%, Lutheran 3%, Greek Catholic 2.6%, other Christian 1%,
other or unspecified 11.1%, unaffiliated 14.5% (2001 census)
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Languages:
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Hungarian 93.6%, other or
unspecified 6.4% (2001 census)
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Literacy:
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definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population:
99.4%
male:
99.5%
female:
99.3% (2003 est.)
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
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total: 15
years
male:
15 years
female:
16 years (2006)
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Education expenditures:
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5.5% of GDP (2005)
country comparison to the world: 48
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of Hungary
conventional short form:
Hungary
local long form:
Magyar Koztarsasag
local short form:
Magyarorszag
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy
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Capital:
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name: Budapest
geographic coordinates:
47 30 N, 19 05 E
time difference:
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
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Administrative divisions:
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19 counties (megyek,
singular - megye), 23 urban counties (singular - megyei varos), and 1
capital city (fovaros)
counties:
Bacs-Kiskun, Baranya, Bekes, Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen,
Csongrad, Fejer, Gyor-Moson-Sopron, Hajdu-Bihar, Heves,
Jasz-Nagykun-Szolnok, Komarom-Esztergom, Nograd, Pest, Somogy,
Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg, Tolna, Vas, Veszprem, Zala
urban counties:
Bekescsaba, Debrecen, Dunaujvaros, Eger, Erd,
Gyor, Hodmezovasarhely, Kaposvar, Kecskemet, Miskolc, Nagykanizsa,
Nyiregyhaza, Pecs, Salgotarjan, Sopron, Szeged, Szekesfehervar,
Szekszard, Szolnok, Szombathely, Tatabanya, Veszprem, Zalaegerszeg
capital city:
Budapest
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Independence:
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25 December 1000
(crowning of King STEPHEN I, traditional founding date)
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National holiday:
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Saint Stephen's Day, 20
August
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Constitution:
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18 August 1949, effective
20 August 1949; revised 19 April 1972; 18 October 1989; and 1997
note:
18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for
individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime
minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight;
1997 amendment streamlined the judicial system
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Legal system:
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based on the
German-Austrian legal system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age;
universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President
Laszlo SOLYOM (since 5 August 2005)
head of government:
Prime Minister Viktor ORBAN (since 29 May 2010)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers prime minister elected by the
National Assembly on the recommendation of the president; other
ministers proposed by the prime minister and appointed and relieved of
their duties by the president
elections:
president elected by the National Assembly for a
five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 6-7
June 2005 (next to be held by June 2010); prime minister elected by the
National Assembly on the recommendation of the president; election last
held 29 May 2010
election results:
Laszlo SOLYOM was elected president by a simple
majority in the third round of voting, 185 to 182; Viktor ORBAN was
elected prime minister; result of legislative vote - 261 to 107
note:
to be elected, the president must win two-thirds
of legislative vote in the first two rounds or a simple majority in the
third round
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral National
Assembly or Orszaggyules (386 seats; members elected by popular vote
under a system of proportional and direct representation to serve
four-year terms)
elections:
last held on 11 and 25 April 2010 (next to be held
in April 2014)
election results:
percent of vote by party (5% or more of the vote
required for parliamentary representation in the first round) - Fidesz
52.7%, MSzP %, Jobbik %, LMP %; seats by party - Fidesz 263, MSzP 59,
Jobbik 47, LMP 16
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Judicial branch:
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Constitutional Court
(judges are elected by the National Assembly for nine-year terms)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Alliance of Free
Democrats or SzDSz [Attila RETKES]; Christian Democratic People's Party
or KDNP [Semjen ZSOLT]; Hungarian Civic Alliance or Fidesz [Viktor
ORBAN, chairman]; Hungarian Democratic Forum or MDF [Ibolya DAVID];
Hungarian Socialist Party or MSzP [Ildiko LENDVAI]; Movement for a
Better Hungary or Jobbik [Gabor VONA]; Politics Can Be Different or LMP
[13-member leadership]
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Air Work Group (works to
reduce air pollution in towns and cities); Company For Freedom Rights
(Tarsasag a Szabadsagjogokert) or TASZ (personal data protection);
Danube Circle (protests the building of the Gabchikovo-Nagymaros dam);
Green Future (protests the impact of lead contamination of local factory
on health of the people); environmentalists: Hungarian Ornithological
and Nature Conservation Society (Magyar Madartani Egyesulet)or MME;
Green Alternative (Zold Alternativa)
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International organization participation:
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Australia Group, BIS, CE,
CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA (cooperating state), EU, FAO, G-9,
IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO,
NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA,
Schengen Convention, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIFIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
Bela SZOMBATI
chancery:
3910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 362-6730
FAX:
[1] (202) 966-8135
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
Tsakopoulos KOUNALAKIS
embassy:
Szabadsag ter 12, H-1054 Budapest
mailing address:
pouch: American Embassy Budapest, 5270 Budapest
Place, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5270
telephone:
[36] (1) 475-4400
FAX:
[36] (1) 475-4764
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Flag description:
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three equal horizontal
bands of red (top), white, and green; the flag dates to the national
movement of the 18th and 19th centuries, and fuses the medieval colors
of the Hungarian coat of arms with the revolutionary tricolor form of
the French flag; folklore attributes virtues to the colors: red for
strength, white for faithfulness, and green for hope; alternatively, the
red is seen as being for the blood spilled in defense of the land,
white for freedom, and green for the pasturelands that make up so much
of the country
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Economy - overview:
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Hungary has made the transition
from a centrally planned to a market economy, with a per capita income
nearly two-thirds that of the EU-25 average. The private sector accounts
for more than 80% of GDP. Foreign ownership of and investment in
Hungarian firms is widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment
totaling more than $200 billion since 1989. The government's austerity
measures, imposed since late 2006, have reduced the budget deficit from
over 9% of GDP in 2006 to 3.3% in 2008. Hungary's impending inability to
service its short-term debt - brought on by the global financial crisis
in late 2008 - led Budapest to seek and receive an IMF-arranged
financial assistance package worth over $25 billion. The global economic
downturn, declining exports, and low domestic consumption and fixed
asset accumulation, dampened by government austerity measures, resulted
in an economic contraction of 6.7% in 2009.
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$184.9 billion (2009
est.)
country comparison to the world: 54
$198.2
billion (2008 est.)
$197
billion (2007 est.)
note:
data are in 2009 US dollars
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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$125.7 billion (2009
est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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-6.7% (2009 est.)
99
0.6%
(2008 est.)
1.2%
(2007 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$18,600 (2009 est.)
$20,000
(2008 est.)
$19,800
(2007 est.)
note:
data are in 2009 US dollars
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 2.8%
industry:
34.7%
services:
62.5% (2009 est.)
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Labor force:
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3.8 million (January 2010
est.)
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Labor force -
by occupation:
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agriculture: 4.5%
industry:
32.1%
services:
63.4% (2008)
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Unemployment rate:
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10.8% (2009 est.)
22
7.8%
(2008 est.)
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Population
below poverty line:
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12% (2010 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 3.5%
highest 10%:
24.1% (2004)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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28 (2005)
22
24.4
(1998)
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Investment (gross fixed):
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20% of GDP (2009 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $54.11
billion
expenditures:
$59.3 billion (2009 est.)
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Public debt:
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78% of GDP (2009 est.)
5
72.9%
of GDP (2008 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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4.2% (2009 est.)
36
6.1%
(2008 est.)
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Central bank
discount rate:
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6.25% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 39
10%
(31 December 2008)
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Commercial bank prime lending rate:
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6.66% (31 December 2009)
10.18%
(31 December 2008)
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Stock of money:
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$30.27 billion (31
December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 35
$32.78
billion (31 December 2008)
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Stock of quasi money:
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$40.7 billion (31
December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 42
$47.49
billion (31 December 2008)
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Stock of
domestic credit:
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$88.67 billion (31
December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 43
$114.3
billion (31 December 2008)
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Market value of publicly traded shares:
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$30.33 billion (31
December 2009)
$18.58
billion (31 December 2008)
$47.65
billion (31 December 2007)
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Agriculture - products:
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wheat, corn, sunflower
seed, potatoes, sugar beets; pigs, cattle, poultry, dairy products
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Industries:
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mining, metallurgy,
construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially
pharmaceuticals), motor vehicles
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Industrial production growth rate:
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-14.2% (2009 est.)
56
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Electricity -
production:
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40.03 billion kWh (2008
est.)
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Electricity -
consumption:
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37.4 billion kWh (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 55
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Electricity - exports:
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9.446 billion kWh (2008
est.)
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Electricity - imports:
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13.35 billion kWh (2008
est.)
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Oil - production:
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37,830 bbl/day (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 67
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Oil - consumption:
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162,100 bbl/day (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
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Oil - exports:
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72,050 bbl/day (2008
est.)
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Oil - imports:
|
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195,400 bbl/day (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
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Oil - proved reserves:
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20.18 million bbl (1
January 2009 est.)
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Natural gas -
production:
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2.643 billion cu m (2008
est.)
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Natural gas -
consumption:
|
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13.17 billion cu m (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
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Natural gas - exports:
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21 million cu m (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
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Natural gas - imports:
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11.47 billion cu m (2008
est.)
9
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Natural
gas - proved reserves:
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8.098 billion cu m (1
January 2009 est.)
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Current account balance:
|
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$1.507 billion (2009
est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
-$10.94
billion (2008 est.)
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Exports:
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$82.49 billion (2009
est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
$107.2
billion (2008 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment
61.1%, other manufactures 28.7%, food products 6.5%, raw materials 2%,
fuels and electricity 1.6% (2009 est.)
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Exports - partners:
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Germany 25.4%, Italy
5.2%, Romania 5.1%, Austria 4.7%, Taiwan 4.5%, Slovakia 4.5%, France
4.5%, UK 4.4% (2008)
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Imports:
|
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$75.93 billion (2009
est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
$107.3
billion (2008 est.)
|
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment
50%, fuels and electricity 11%, food products, raw materials
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Imports - partners:
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Germany 24.6%, Russia
8.7%, China 7.2%, Austria 6%, Taiwan 4.9%, Netherlands 4.4%, France
4.2%, Italy 4.1% (2008)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
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$44.18 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
$33.87
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
|
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Debt - external:
|
|
$116.8 billion (31
December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 31
$212.1
billion (31 December 2008)
|
|
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Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
|
|
$238.5 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
0
$237.1
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
|
|
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Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
|
|
$19.38 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 37
$17.64
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
|
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Exchange rates:
|
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forints (HUF) per US
dollar - 200.64 (2009), 171.8 (2008), 183.83 (2007), 210.39 (2006),
199.58 (2005)
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Telephones - main lines in use:
|
|
3.094 million (2008)
|
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Telephones -
mobile cellular:
|
|
12.224 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 50
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Telephone system:
|
|
general assessment: the
telephone system has been modernized; the system is digital and highly
automated; trunk services are carried by fiber-optic cable and digital
microwave radio relay; a program for fiber-optic subscriber connections
was initiated in 1996
domestic:
competition among mobile-cellular service
providers has led to a sharp increase in the use of mobile-cellular
phones since 2000 and a decrease in the number of fixed-line connections
international:
country code - 36; Hungary has fiber-optic cable
connections with all neighboring countries; the international switch is
in Budapest; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and
Indian Ocean regions), 1 Inmarsat, 1 very small aperture terminal (VSAT)
system of ground terminals
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Radio broadcast stations:
|
|
AM 5, FM 90, shortwave 1
(2008)
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Television
broadcast stations:
|
|
95 (2008)
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Internet country code:
|
|
.hu
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Internet hosts:
|
|
2.261 million (2009)
9
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|
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Internet users:
|
|
5.873 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 40
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Airports:
|
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46 (2009)
|
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Airports - with paved runways:
|
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total: 20
over 3,047 m:
2
2,438 to 3,047 m:
8
1,524 to 2,437 m:
4
914 to 1,523 m:
4
under 914 m:
2 (2009)
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
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total: 26
2,438 to 3,047 m:
2
1,524 to 2,437 m:
3
914 to 1,523 m:
10
under 914 m:
11 (2009)
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Heliports:
|
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5 (2009)
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Pipelines:
|
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gas 4,407 km; oil 987 km;
refined products 335 km (2009)
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Railways:
|
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total: 8,057
km
7
broad gauge:
36 km 1.524-m gauge
standard gauge:
7,802 km 1.435-m gauge (2,628 km electrified)
narrow gauge:
219 km 0.760-m gauge (2008)
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Roadways:
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total: 160,057
km
country comparison to the world: 33
paved:
70,539 km (31,363 km of interurban roads including
785 km of expressways)
unpaved:
89,518 km (2008)
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Waterways:
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1,622 km (most on Danube
River) (2008)
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Ports and terminals:
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Budapest, Dunaujvaros,
Gyor-Gonyu, Csepel, Baja, Mohacs
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Military branches:
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Land Forces, Hungarian Air Force
(Magyar Legiero, ML) (2010)
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Military service age and obligation:
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18-50 years of age for
voluntary military service; no conscription; 6-month service obligation
(2008)
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Manpower available for military service:
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males age 16-49: 2,380,381
females age 16-49:
2,319,142 (2010 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service:
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males age 16-49: 1,884,232
females age 16-49:
1,923,902 (2010 est.)
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Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
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male: 58,894
female:
55,922 (2010 est.)
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Military expenditures:
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1.75% of GDP (2005 est.)
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| Transnational Issues
::Hungary |
Disputes - international:
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bilateral government, legal,
technical and economic working group negotiations continue in 2006 with
Slovakia over Hungary's failure to complete its portion of the
Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a
member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Hungary has
implemented the strict Schengen border rules
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Illicit drugs:
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transshipment point for
Southwest Asian heroin and cannabis and for South American cocaine
destined for Western Europe; limited producer of precursor chemicals,
particularly for amphetamine and methamphetamine; efforts to counter
money laundering, related to organized crime and drug trafficking are
improving but remain vulnerable; significant consumer of ecstasy
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