Hungary and US to agree on economic cooperation package, PM Orban says

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary and the United States will agree on an economic cooperation package that will help the Hungarian economy and could offset the effect of possible U.S. tariffs, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday.

Orban, a long-time supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, said that the economic package would expand on the already existing political alliance between Hungary and the United States.

The Hungarian PM said that such an economic agreement would help Hungary even if a trade war between the U.S. and the European Union breaks out.

U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that his administration would soon announce a 25% tariff on goods from the EU, which the Republican leader said had been created to "screw" the United States.

"Hungary will suffer losses [in a trade war], just like all European Union member states. We do not yet know its extent, but we can be sure that it will happen," Orban said at the annual conference of the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

He added that Hungary has a good chance of reaching an agreement with Washington, and that the package needs to be able to restrict or entirely negate the effect of a possible trade war within Hungary.

Hungarian officials are already negotiating the renewal of a tax treaty between the two countries that was terminated by the previous American administration, Orban said.

Other elements of the agreement will help Hungary to "offset, at a national economic level, the losses caused by U.S. tariffs imposed on Europe and will provide compensation both in monetary and real economic terms."

Although Central and Eastern Europe's direct trade exposure to the U.S. was limited, growth prospects were likely to be hit through the German car sector if the 25% tariffs proposed by Trump come into effect, S&P Global Ratings told Reuters.

(Reporting by Anita Komuves; Editing by Sharon Singleton and Louise Heavens)