BUDAPEST, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Gyorgy Matolcsy, governor of the National Bank of Hungary (MNB), on Monday enumerated the benefits of the forint, the country's currency, on its 75th birthday and said that Hungary would join the eurozone in "due course."
"After 2010, the forint made it possible to create and preserve a new formula for the success of Hungary's economic policy based on balance and growth," Matolcsy said at a conference broadcast online from here.
He recalled that Hungary had committed to adopt the euro in 2004 and said that the MNB and the government both aim to meet this obligation.
It is in Hungary's interest to make certain that the switch from the forint to the euro is safe, and successful, does not require sacrifices from the real economy, does not hamper growth, does not lead to job losses or damage competitiveness, he argued.
The central bank chief also recalled that in times of high inflation, the forint has always proved to be a useful tool to keep consumer price increases under control.
"We have already tamped down inflation, we can succeed again with the forint," he said, recalling that the MNB's Monetary Council has already taken the "right path" by increasing the base rate.
The forint has outperformed the euro in countering the financial and economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, he argued. While Hungary's economy suffered a significant 5.1 percent decline in 2020, that of the eurozone countries shrank by an average 6.6 percent, Matolcsy explained.
With the forint, the MNB has been able to use specifically targeted financial tools for crisis management, he said, adding that Hungary was on an export-driven economic trajectory, which required a flexible monetary and exchange rate policy.
To mark the 75th anniversary of the introduction of the forint, the MNB on Monday issued six collector versions of the five-forint circulation coin in 12 million copies. Enditem
