We have spotted a captivating chart in an analysis recently published by Morgan Stanley. It shows household consumption in Central and Eastern Europe. While we might have the impression that household consumption took off in Hungary, the country is still lagging behind its regional peers.
The world economic crisis had the smallest impact on Poland where household consumption is now 30% over the pre-crisis period, specifically what was recorded in Q3 2018.
Although consumption dropped more in Romania than in Hungary, it has reached its pre-crisis consumption level much sooner than Hungary, and it has been on a faster track ever since.
The Czech Republic, however, shows a much more balanced performance. There was no meaningful downturn in post-crisis household consumption, although recovery started only slowly. By now, household consumption is up 15% over Q3 2008 there.
And while we kept hearing over the last few years what a dynamic growth path Hungary’s consumption is on, Morgan Stanley’s chart shows otherwise; it actually puts Hungary on the bottom of the CEE ranking in this respect. Over the last few years, Hungary’s consumption grew largely at the same pace as in the Czech Republic or Poland but that was not enough to catch up with the others.
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