Seventy percent of Hungarian CEOs expect acceleration of the global economic growth; 60% of them made optimistic statements regarding the Hungarian economy but only 39% are confident about the growth of their companies. The respondents to PwC’s 14th Hungarian CEO Survey predict a 1.8% GDP growth, a 415 forint-to-euro exchange rate, and 4.8% inflation for 2025. The business achievements resulting so far from the use of AI fall short of the expectations expressed in last year’s survey, but two-fifths of the CEOs expect GenAI to increase their profitability in 2025. This is somewhat qualified by the fact that merely 38% of chief executives have trust in technology. Despite the signs of global climate change, sustainability is still not a priority for CEOs.
An accelerating economy with no changes in revenues?
Globally, 58% of the CEOs expect an acceleration in the growth of the world economy and one-fifth expect a slowdown. Hungarian CEOs are way more optimistic: 70% of them are confident about a global acceleration and only one-tenth expect a slowdown. The proportion of Hungarian CEOs saying that global economic growth will accelerate has never been so high.
As in the previous year, 60% of the CEOs think that the growth of the Hungarian economy will pick up in 2025. At the same time, 39% are very or extremely confident about their own revenue growth, which is the lowest proportion ever.
“The change in confidence about improving economic growth has always signalled the direction GDP will change. The current results suggest that last year’s growth will accelerate. Hungarian CEOs are more confident than ever before that the global and Hungarian economy will grow and are less confident than ever before that their revenues will increase. The growth of some could easily present a problem for many. The question is where trust and lack of trust comes from,”
In our survey, we also asked CEOs about their expectations. In their responses to last year’s survey, they predicted an annual average exchange rate of 394 forints to the euro for 2024 (the Hungarian National Bank’s official average figure was 395). In their current responses, they anticipate an exchange rate of 415 forints to the euro, 4.8% inflation, and 1.8% GDP growth for 2025.
CEOs expect the Russian-Ukrainian war to end in 2026, with the expected end date being delayed by another year every year. Their prediction regarding the introduction of the euro is also adjusted by a further year: 82% of respondents expect that the euro will be introduced in Hungary, and they expect it to happen in 2034. Respondents expect a widespread use of autonomous vehicles and a transition to green energy by 2040.
Preparing for the future amidst the skills shortage
Considering the external factors impacting companies, Hungarian CEOs are generally significantly less concerned compared to 2023 but are still more worried than their global counterparts. The top threat is the skills shortage: 44% of Hungarian CEOs are concerned about this, with the proportion of global CEOs concerned being “only” 23%. Compared to last year, perceived exposure to geopolitical conflicts and macroeconomic volatility has hardly changed (36% and 38% perceive increased exposure); however, the proportion of those concerned about inflation is much lower than last year (51% last year, 39% this year). Meanwhile, the proportion of CEOs having high concerns about cyber risks is steadily increasing (38% this year, compared to 35% last year and 33% two years ago).
Sixty percent of Hungarian CEOs think that their organisations will be economically viable for more than ten years if they continue on their current course. Nevertheless, only 12% estimate that they will hold the CEO position for more than ten years.
Those who do not see their organisations viable over the next ten years have named external factors such as strong industry competition (48%), change in the regulatory environment (47%), increasing costs (46%), and a decrease in demand (44%) as the main reasons. Apart from these, 35% of the respondents also mention the lack of organisational efficiency as a challenge.
CEOs that are confident about their organisations remaining viable for more than ten years think that this is mostly due to internal factors such as sound strategic decisions (64%), organisational efficiency (42%), and being adequately prepared for the competition in terms of qualifications and skills (37%). Long-term business success can be externally supported by an increase in demand as well as regulatory changes.
“Hungarian CEOs are more likely than their global counterparts to say that the viability of their companies is determined by external factors. This suggests that Hungarian chief executives perceive their organisations as relatively more exposed. On the other hand, they are confident in their skills and their preparedness as a CEO, among others,”
Redefining strategy in different fields
The ability to change is indicated by the fact that 55% of Hungarian companies developed innovative products or services in the past five years, as opposed to the global 38%; 40% formed new strategic partnerships, and 38% opened up to new customers.
Hungarian companies generated 13% of their revenues from the introduction of new product groups or from new market locations, and 4% from new, separate business activities.
Twenty-nine percent of Hungarian companies and 55% of companies worldwide are planning to acquire other companies in the next three years. This does not involve entering a new industry for more than half (54%) of the Hungarian companies concerned. This proportion is 37% globally. Szabolcs Mezei highlighted:
“While Hungarian enterprises planning an acquisition primarily target acquiring their competitors, globally, acquisitions are aimed more at entering new industries.”
Artificial intelligence: helpful or harmful?
Although 20% of CEOs said that artificial intelligence (GenAI) does not play a role at their companies, the other 80% reported explicit efficiency gains from the use of AI. In addition, technology also brought an increase in revenues and profitability for more than one-tenth of the companies. These results fall short both globally and in Hungary of the forecasts CEOs made last year, but expectations are still very positive. For example, two-fifths of the respondents expect a growth in profitability from the use of GenAI in 2025.
Trust is an interesting aspect in the context of AI: generally, 38% of Hungarian CEOs have trust in artificial intelligence, with this proportion being 33% globally and 19% in Central and Eastern Europe. Still, 49% of the CEOs surveyed expect that AI will be integrated in the technology platforms and workflows (47%) of their organisations and that it will have a role to play in employee skills (31%) and product/service innovation (27%).
“The keys to business success are trust and cooperation. It is perplexing that CEOs expect to future-proof their companies with a technology they don’t really trust. The question is whether this indicates a general lack of trust or whether the trust they place in their employees’ AI skills offsets their lack of trust in the technology itself. Both statements are probably true. However, the gains will be tangible only for companies where the introduction and use of AI enhances trust and cooperation,”
Sustainability is not a priority
The personal performance of two-thirds (66%) of Hungarian CEOs is not assessed against whether they keep their companies’ operations sustainable. The global proportion is 40%. If we add that 13% of CEOs regard climate change as a threat to their operations, it is not surprising that sustainability goals are not at the top of their priority lists.
Forty-nine percent of the climate-friendly investments implemented by companies in the past five years resulted in cost savings, which is not without reason: our earlier surveys showed that these investments were primarily meant as a response to the energy crisis. Climate-friendly investments brought revenue growth for 21% of the companies, and 30% of CEOs reported that they received higher government incentives as a result of these investments. Last year, 56% of the companies started climate-friendly investments, but only 41% accepted lower hurdle rates for these investments than the minimum hurdle rate expected of other investments. However, the greatest barrier to climate-friendly investments is regulatory complexity rather than lower hurdle rates. This is followed by lower economic returns and lack of funding.
“While the undeniable signs of climate change are already seriously affecting actors in the value chain, CEOs do not perceive this as a threat on their time horizon, which is why sustainability is not high on their agenda. In addition to facilitating climate-friendly operations, regulators must also enable businesses to integrate compliance with sustainability requirements into their value choices in a normative manner,”
Notes to editors:
Methodology:
We conducted our fourteenth Hungarian CEO Survey based on PwC’s Annual Global CEO Survey. The aim of the research we conducted in parallel with the global survey was to gain a more comprehensive picture of what Hungarian senior executives think, and what expectations and growth opportunities they have.
In the Hungarian survey, PwC’s experts conducted in-person interviews with the CEOs of 252 Hungarian companies between October and December 2024, and collected quantitative data by means of questionnaires. We contacted companies that PwC industry groups selected from the following sectors: financial services; technology, media and entertainment, telecommunications; commerce, consumer markets; industrial manufacturing; automotive; government and public sector; healthcare and pharma; energy and utilities; hospitality and leisure; real estate; agribusiness, food; SSC and other financial services.
The results are presented in detail on PwC’s Hungarian CEO Survey website.
You can find earlier press materials on our website.
Our most recent Sustainability Report is available on our Corporate Responsibility website.
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