Retail Sales Rise as Tax Cuts Boost Household Spending

Hungary’s retail sales continue to rise, driven by government-led tax relief measures and targeted price interventions, according to a new analysis from the Ministry for National Economy (NGM). The ministry links the positive trend to increased household income and spending power.

Data from the Hungarian Central Statistical Office shows that retail turnover in June 2025 rose 3% year-on-year and 0.5% month-on-month. Food and mixed-goods store sales grew 3.7%, with grocery-heavy retailers up 4.9%. Non-food sales rose 3.9%, bringing total national turnover to 1,702 billion HUF (cc. 4.36 billion EUR).

The government attributes the growth to Europe’s “largest tax cut program,” including full personal income tax exemptions for mothers with two or more children including also mothers under-30 and under-40 years of age starting in January.

The family tax benefit has also been doubled. Combined, these measures are expected to return over 650 billion HUF (cc. 1.63 billion EUR) to households.

Additionally, the government will distribute 30,000 HUF (75 EUR) food vouchers to 2–2.5 million pensioners this year, totaling 83 billion HUF (207.5 million EUR).

To protect consumers, officials have imposed profit margin caps on groceries and household goods, leading to average price drops of 20–26%. Over 2,000 inspections have been conducted to enforce compliance, while voluntary price caps have been introduced across banking, telecom, insurance, and pharmaceutical sectors.