BBJ CEO Boardroom Meeting Roundtable, June 11. 2024

BBJ Boardroom Meeting Recap: Engaging Dialogue at the Matild Palace Hotel.

Fifty guests drawn from Budapest's CEO and diplomatic communities (including six ambassadors) started their day at the latest BBJ - Budapest Business Journal Boardroom Meeting at the Matild Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Budapest, on Tuesday morning.

Our regular roundtable discussion featured H.E. Jeroen Vergeylen the Belgian Ambassador to Hungary and Tamas Locsei country managing partner for PwC Hungary. Their conversation, moderated by BBJ editor-in-chief Robin Marshall MBE, was framed by Sunday's municipal and European Parliament elections, the passing of the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU from Belgium to Hungary on July 1 and, of course, the latest macroeconomic outlooks.

Issues covered included how the European elections might influence power dynamics in Hungary and the EU, whether Péter Magyar and his Tisza party are likely to be a lasting force in Hungarian politics, and the fallout from the election, such as French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to call a snap general election, and its potential economic impact? 

Other topics included the highlights of the Belgian presidency, the likely priorities of the Hungarian presidency, and Belgian-Hungarian relations ahead of the handover. On the Hungarian macroeconomic front, we touched on inflation and GDP growth this year and next, and whether growing real wages might benefit or threaten the economy.

Thank you to all our esteemed guests for contributing to a thought-provoking and insightful discussion!