Page 11 - bne_newspaper_June_02_2017

Central Europe
June 2, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 11
On the positive side, the Polish PMI re-
mained above the 50-point threshold for a 32nd consecutive month, while some analysts sought
to cling to the extreme optimism incurred by the strong first-quarter GDP data. “It seems that the stronger zloty and lower oil prices could be behind the dip, as input and output price inflation sof- tened,” KBC noted.
Demand for manufactured goods eased overall –
although foreign orders increased – and job crea- tion in the sector was also at its slowest in seven months in May.
Hungary's PMI reading accelerated to a record high 62.1 points in May, up from 56.2 points in April, the Hungarian Association of Logistics, Purchasing and Inventory Management (Halpim) announced. The May average for the last three years was 53.3 points.
Businessman linked to PM Orban acquires 49% stake in Hungary’s MKB
bne IntelliNews
A private equity fund controlled by a Hungarian oligarch regularly named as a proxy for the prime minister has agreed a deal to buy a 49% stake in MKB Bank, it was announced on June 1.
The acquisition by Konzum PE Magantokealap needs the approval of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank, but that will likely prove a formality. The central bank, headed by Gyorgy Matolcsy, has been close- ly involved in opaque transactions surrounding the country's fifth largest lender over the past few years.
Once the deal goes through, Lorinc Meszaros – the mayor of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s home village – will directly and indirectly hold 49% of the shares in MKB, further boosting his interest in the Hungarian banking sector. The former plumber previously raised his stake in state-owned mort- gage bank FHB Jelzalogbank on April 21 through his private equity fund.
Konzum will acquire a 45% stake in MKB from Hungarian private equity fund Metis Private Capi-
tal Fund. Konzum will also establish a separate fund under the name Metis II, which will purchase a further 4% stake in MKB from Blue Robin In- vestments.
The sale of MKB last year was surrounded by a lack of transparency and speculation that the central bank’s controversial foundations were the actual buyers. After MKB was bought by the state in 2014, it was managed by the Magyar Nemzeti Bank. The central bank sold the lender to a con- sortium of private equity funds for HUF37bn, but the ultimate buyer has never been clearly identi- fied.
The consortium included Metis Private Capital Fund, which took 45% of the shares. The main investor behind the fund is speculated to be Laszlo Szijj, owner of construction company Duna Aszfalt, who also has business ties with Meszaros and is a regular winner of state tenders, which is considered a useful guide in today’s Hungary as to who is close to the Fidesz government. Hun- garian-born financier and philanthropist George