„Mr. Orban said his government plans to announce a series of measures in February aimed at shrinking spending on pensions, unemployment benefits and state subsidies for drugs. He said the era of generous and long-lasting welfare benefits for the unemployed »is over.« But he said he didn't yet have estimates for how much money these moves would save the government.
Markets have been hoping that the February initiatives will provide evidence of concrete and enduring cuts in state spending.
Last year, Mr. Orban scorned calls from the IMF and EU for serious cuts in state spending. Instead, he stuck to his election promises of no new austerity measures and moved to cut personal income taxes and lower tax rates on small and midsize businesses.