That dollar amount results from a 39.8% increase from $120 billion in 2020.
Year over year, the total value of Hungarian exports rose 6.1% compared to $158.1 billion for 2023.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2024, the Hungarian forint depreciated by -15.7% against the US dollar since 2020 and diluted by -3.5% from 2023 to 2024. Hungary’s weaker local currency makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers starting from American currency.
Hungary’s Most Valuable Export Customers
The latest available country-specific data shows that 72.6% of products exported from Hungary was bought by importers in: Germany (24.9% of the Hungarian total), Romania (5.6%), Poland (5.3%), Italy (5.1%), Slovakia (5%), France (4.23%), Czech Republic (4.21%), United States of America (4.1%), Austria (4%), United Kingdom (3.7%), Netherlands (3.4%) and Spain (3%).
From a continental perspective, 86.4% of Hungary’s exports by value was delivered to fellow European countries while 6.5% was sold to importers in Asia. Hungary shipped another 5.5% worth of goods to customers in North America.
Hungary joined the European Union on May 1, 2004. Fellow EU member states were customers for 75.8% of total Hungarian export sales.
Tinier percentages went to buyers in Africa (0.7%), Latin America (0.5%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania (0.4%) led by Australia and New Zealand.
Given Hungary’s population of 9.59 million people, its total $167.7 billion in 2024 exported goods translates to roughly $17,500 for every resident in the landlocked European country. That dollar metric exceeds the average $16,600 per capita one year earlier during 2023.
Hungary’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Hungarian global shipments during 2024. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Hungary.
- Electrical machinery, equipment: US$39.4 billion (23.5% of total exports)
- Vehicles: $28.3 billion (16.9%)
- Machinery including computers: $26.1 billion (15.5%)
- Pharmaceuticals: $11 billion (6.5%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: $5.98 billion (3.6%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $5.56 billion (3.3%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $4.7 billion (2.8%)
- Rubber, rubber articles: $3.5 billion (2.1%)
- Cereals: $2.1 billion (1.3%)
- Articles of iron or steel: $2.05 billion (1.2%)
Hungary’s top 10 exports generated over three-quarters (76.7%) of the overall value of Hungarian shipments.
Pharmaceuticals represent the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 29.7% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was cereals via a 14.3% advance led by wheat.
Hungary’s shipments of machinery including computers posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 13.9%.
The lone decliner among Hungary’s top 10 export categories was electrical machinery and equipment, thanks to its -3.3% year-over-year drop.
The above data is presented at the two-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level.
Drilling down to the more detailed four-digit HTS code level, Hungary’s most valuable export product is cars (8.9% of the European country’s total). Following that are automotive parts or accessories (6.6%), electric storage batteries (4.7%), computers including optical readers (4.1%), medication mixes in dosage (3.1%), phone devices including smartphones (2.8%), blood fractions including antisera (2.5%), piston engines (2.4%), insulated wire or cable (2%), then electrical or optical circuit boards and panels (1.9%).
Hungary’s Largest Trade Surpluses by Major Products
Hungary recorded an overall US$16.1 billion trade surplus in 2024, growing its trade deficit by 75.1% from -$9.2 billion one year earlier for 2023.
The following types of Hungarian product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports reflect the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Vehicles: US$12.8 billion (Up by 1.7% since 2023)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $8.7 billion (Down by -9.5%)
- Machinery including computers: $3.9 billion (Up by 108.2%)
- Pharmaceuticals: $3 billion (Up by 25.5%)
- Cereals: $1.8 billion (Up by 40.1%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $1.3 billion (Up by 29.6%)
- Rubber, rubber articles: $1.2 billion (Up by 16.9%)
- Food industry waste, animal fodder: $828.6 million (Up by 4%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $799.2 million (Up by 25.9%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $608.9 million (Up by 10.9%)
Hungary has highly positive net exports notably in the international trade of vehicles as well as electrical machinery and equipment. In turn, these cashflows indicate Hungary’s strong competitive advantages under the related product categories.
Hungary’s Worst Trade Deficits by Major Products
Below are exports from Hungary that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Hungary’s goods trail Hungarian importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$7.8 billion (Down by -16.7% since 2023)
- Other chemical goods: -$2.2 billion (Down by -41.8%)
- Iron, steel: -$1.7 billion (Down by -3.8%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$1.4 billion (Down by -2.5%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$1.2 billion (Up by 1.4%)
- Aluminum: -$944.3 million (Down by -4.8%)
- Copper: -$897.8 million (Down by -1.6%)
- Knit or crochet clothing, accessories: -$478.4 million (Up by 86.1%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: -$442.1 million (Up by 35.8%)
- Tanning, dyes, paints, varnishes, ink: -$441.7 million (Up by 4.6%)
Historically, Hungary has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for mineral fuels-related products, particularly crude oil and petroleum gas.
Hungarian Export Companies
Two Hungarian corporations rank among Forbes Global 2000. They are listed below.
- MOL Hungarian Oil (oil, gas)
- OTP Bank (regional financial institution)
Wikipedia also lists exporters from Hungary. Selected examples are shown below.
- Borsod Brewery (beverages)
- BorsodChem (chemicals)
- Ganz Works (automobiles)
- Lehel (household goods)
- Rába (automobiles)
- Richter Gedeon Co. (pharmaceuticals)
In macroeconomic terms, Hungary’s total exported goods represent 37.6% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($446.1 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 37.6% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 compares to 38.1% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Hungary’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Note that these metrics also include a significant amount of re-exporting activity.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Hungary’s unemployment rate averaged 4.475% for 2024, up from an average 4.075% one year earlier in 2023 according to International Monetary Fund statistics.
Hungary’s capital city is Budapest.
See also Germany’s Top Trading Partners, Italy’s Top Trading Partners, Romania’s Top Trading Partners, Slovakia’s Top Trading Partners and Austria’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Europe: Hungary. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on July 28, 2025
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (National Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on July 28, 2025
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on July 28, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Wikipedia, Hungary. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Hungary. Accessed on July 28, 2025
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on July 28, 2025