China’s BYD and Germany’s BMW are building car factories in Hungary and production is expected to start in the second half of 2025, which could boost the country’s economy, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s chief of staff said on Thursday.

Under Orbán, Hungary has become an important trade and investment partner for China, unlike some other EU countries that are considering becoming less dependent on the world’s second-largest economy. In Europe, Germany is Hungary’s main trading partner and many automobile factories already operate in the country.

Orbán also led a campaign to establish Chinese factories for the production of electric cars and batteries in Hungary. However, the Hungarian economy entered technical recession in the third quarter. That’s a tall order for Hungary’s leader, who aims to revive the economy ahead of national elections in 2026.

“Optimism about next year’s economic policy is supported by current events: the new BYD and BMW factories will start production next year, that is, in the second half of the year,” executive chairman Gergei Gulyas said at a briefing.

CATL, one of Hungary’s biggest Chinese investors, is building a 7.3 billion euro battery factory in the eastern city of Debrecen, while Chinese electric car maker BYD last year announced it would build its first European factory in Szeged in the south. BMW is building an automobile factory in Debrecen.