More Innovators among Larger Firms

Among medium and large companies, eight percentage points more firms reported in the second half of the year than in the first half of 2022 that they had introduced a new product or service or significantly improved its quality in the two years preceding the survey, K&H Bank said on Friday, based on its latest, second survey conducted last year.

The statement highlighted that the innovative attitude was characteristic of almost every second company, mostly those with a turnover of between HUF 300 million and HUF 1 billion, mainly operating in the Central Hungary region.

Slightly more firms, especially in the retail sector, indicated that the share of turnover generated by products introduced or improved in the last two years was above 10%, they said.

They explained that firms have placed less emphasis on innovating their manufacturing or service process, or logistics and delivery process, compared to the past, but have focused more on improving their back-end processes.

Less than a fifth of the companies surveyed were involved in R&D, either through external subcontracting or in-house.

A third of firms sought to innovate by recently purchasing equipment with higher technical content; 40% of firms typically purchased software.

The survey confirmed that large companies, those with a turnover of over HUF four billion, are the most active in R&D and green solutions. “Within this, the agricultural sector has also made a significant contribution to green investments," the report said.

For the fourth time since the first half of 2021, the financial institution has conducted a survey on innovation among medium-sized and large companies in Hungary. The data collection was conducted between September 22 and October 14, with 360 representatives of medium and large companies with annual turnover above HUF 300 million interviewed by phone.