The leasing market contracted 26pc in Q4 from the same period a year earlier as Hungary suffered the effects of the global financial crisis, Mr Meszaros said. The market is expected to continue to contract in 2009. The value of leases for new assets could drop as much as 30pc, he said.

Eight pc in 2008

The value of new car leases dropped 8 pc in 2008, including a 28pc yr/yr decline in Q4. In absolute terms, the value of leases fell to HUF 635,2n in 2008 from HUF 689.4bn in 2007. The Q4 value dropped to HUF 127.2bn from HUF 177.5bn. The value of commercial vehicle leases rose 8pc to HUF 185.3bn for the full year, but plunged 34pc to HUF 32.8bn in Q4.

In January: 60 pc

In January, commercial vehicle sales dropped 60pc from the same month a year earlier, Mr Meszaros said. The proportion of new commercial vehicles fell, he added. The downturn on the leasing market is even more evident in the real estate segment, Mr Meszaros said. The real estate leasing market grew a slight 2pc to HUF 177.1bn in 2008, but it slid 38pc to HUF 43.9bn in Q4.

Machinery and equipment

The only segment that was not hit by crisis was machinery and equipment. Value of these leases rose 11pc to HUF 175.4bn. Even in Q4, the segment grew slightly to HUF 45.5bn from HUF 44bn in the same period a year earlier.