Changes in the performance of the agricultural sector in Hungary due to the 2008 economic crisis and COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract Subject and purpose of work: The paper examines two of the most important sectors of agriculture, crop and livestock production, in a time series analysis. The authors analyzed the number of enterprises, the number of employees, labor costs, turnover, and balance sheet total, and also assessed the evolution of liquidity and profitability in the two sectors, broken down by size. Materials and methods: The results of livestock and crop production were examined separately for the period 2008-2020. The analysis was based on aggregated data from the National Tax and Customs Administration in Hungary. Enterprises with the NACE REV 0140 for animal husbandry and 0110 for crop production were studied. In the research time series analysis and, where possible, trend analysis were performed. Results: In the research, the following indicators were examined using time series analysis in both crop and livestock production: the number of companies, the number of employees, the net sales revenue, the composition of net sales, the development of the balance sheet total, cost structure, labor costs, the quick ratio of liquidity, and the ROA indicator. Conclusions: Agricultural enterprises are most affected by the downward trend during the period under review, with the exception that the animal husbandry sector started to decline earlier than the crop production sector.