The economic impact of COVID-19 on Central Europe.
The economic sudden stop which the COVID-19 pandemic has caused in the three non-euro-area states of Central Europe (CE-3) is unprecedented and profound. It is due to the confluence of aggressive containment measures to halt the spread of the disease, the collapse in trade with the euro-area (especially Germany) and the rush to safety in financial markets. The pandemic is further straining ties between CE-3 and Brussels, a relationship already frayed by battles over the EU’s trillion-euro budget and marked differences in responses to the crisis.
The region’s auto industry is slowly reopening, Toyota’s Polish plant following Audi’s Hungarian engine factory and Hyundai’s Czech works.
Governments will closely watch the phased lifting of restrictions elsewhere to assess the effectiveness and sustainability of strategies.
In Hungary, the central government is suspected of discriminating against opposition-held local governments in its crisis response.
