Orban’s Defeat Ignites Euro Convergence Trade in Hungary

A supporter holds a Hungarian flag during Peter Magyar’s Tisza party election event across from parliament in Budapest.

Photographer: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg

Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s election defeat is extending a historic rally in Hungary’s bond market as his successor dangles the prospects of the country adopting the euro.

The extra yield investors demand to hold Hungary’s 10-year domestic bonds instead of German bunds — the euro-area benchmark — has dropped to the lowest level in five years in the wake of Sunday’s election. The forint and Budapest-listed stocks have also advanced sharply, while borrowing costs fell to a multi-year low at Thursday’s bond auction.