Péter Ákos Bod

Péter Ákos Bod

PÉTER ÁKOS BOD (Szigetvár, 1951) economist, university professor. He worked in economic research at the Institute of Planning, Budapest, taught economics in Budapest and in the US before 1989. He was Minister of Industry and Trade between 1990 and 1991, and Governor of the Hungarian National Bank between 1991 and 1994. In 1995–1998, he was member of the Board at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (London), representing East Central European countries. At present, he is director of the Institute of Economics at Corvinus University of Budapest. He is vice chairman of the Hungarian Economic Society, sits on editorial boards of Hungarian journals (incl. this Review). His major publications include A vállalkozó állam (Entrepreneurial State) 1987; A pénz világa (The World of Money) 2001; Gazdaságpolitika (Economic Policy) 2002; Közgazdaságtan (Economics) 2006.

THE VIEW FROM A SMALLER STATE

It is not easy to take issue with Roger Scruton’s analysis: his arguments on the need of nations are supported by his vast knowledge of history, ideas, politics and ethics, and by his impressive experience gained in various parts of our world, including pre- and post-transition East Central Europe. His

CATCH UP WITH THE WEST OR GO WEST?

Jonathan Knott, the British ambassador to Hungary recently quipped that London is the fifth biggest Hungarian town on the planet. Perhaps something of an exaggeration as things stand but probably not for too long. The Facebook group called Londonfalva (“London village”) had attracted a membership of over 22,000 by early 2013 –

CRISIS AFTER CRISIS – ANY LESSONS LEARNT?

It is now more than half a decade since first a local American turbulence and then a global one shook the world of international finance. Half a decade should have been enough time for all those involved – politicians, economists, bankers, analysts, entrepreneurs and consumers – to digest the events

BUDAPEST AS A REGIONAL HUB?

Missed Changes and New Prospects The Hungarian economy has lately lost ground to its neighbours and economic rivals – a phenomenon I wrote about recently, when I looked at the very hard landing of the Hungarian national airline (Magyar Szemle, 2012, issues 5–6). So if we ever had the ambition

WHO NEEDS THE EURO?

Given the acute challenges that Hungary is facing in the fifth year of the financial disturbances in Europe, one could argue that it is not topical to discuss the whys, ifs and hows of Hungary’s entry into the eurozone. The last time Hungary comfortably met even one entry condition of

THE ‘LAST TWENTY YEARS’ AS FAILURE?

Hungary’s Transition – Revised TRANSITION IS A COMPLEX PROCESS Society is a multilayered, flexible, and structured organism, closely connected with its global environment through bonds of interdependence. Defining the mechanisms of any society in simple yet meaningful terms is hence extremely difficult. Economic mechanisms on the other hand are assumed

MUDDY WATERS

Values and Dangers in the Hungarian Economy Whe investment bank analysts’ community and the Western political commentariat, writing about Hungary, have mostly focused on the twists and turns of the policy disputes/dialogues between the Hungarian authorities and the duo of the International Monetary Fund and the European Union as former

NON-CONVENTIONAL ECONOMIC POLICY MEASURES – HUNGARIAN STYLE

In this essay I attempt to draw a preliminary balance of recent non-orthodox economic policy practice in Europe and, in particular, in Hungary even if the essayist lacks historical perspective. It would be good to wait until data and hard facts are available but this is rarely the case in

A NOT TOO ORIGINAL SIN: HUNGARIAN INDEBTEDNESS IN FOREIGN CURRENCY

The context Every third Hungarian family services a loan denominated in foreign currency, predominantly in Swiss francs (CHF), drawn either to buy a house or a car. The whole stock of foreign exchange (FX) household mortgage loans amounted approximately to CHF 22 billion, that is 18 per cent of Hungarian

ON BUSINESS-GOVERNMENT RELATIONS: THE HUNGARIAN CASE

U-Turn in taxing big firms Soon after the change of government in May 2010, the new Parliament voted for a “bank tax” – in fact, a surprisingly high levy on financial sector companies. A second package included a surtax on telecoms, energy and large retail firms (typically foreign owned), as