Hungary's 2022 current account deficit could widen to 7.7-8.7% of economic output this year largely due to its huge energy import bill, the central bank said in its fresh inflation report on Thursday.

The bank sees the 2023 current account deficit narrowing to 5.8-7.0% of GDP as the economy is expected to slow.

"Overall, the current account deficit may peak at around 8 percent of GDP in 2022. Looking ahead, the deceleration in investment and consumption growth restrains the expansion in imports, which will still be partly offset in 2023 by the import-increasing effect of energy prices," the bank said. (Reporting by Krisztina Than)