Budapest, Nov 23 (IANS): The Hungarian government has decided to suspend the obligation of domestic small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in the tourism industry to pay a four per cent tax known as "tourism development contribution," the Hungarian Tourism Agency (MTU) said in Budapest.

The suspension, in force between October 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023, is the "fastest and most effective" government assistance to the country's SMEs saddled with the ongoing energy crisis, the MTU added on Tuesday.

The measure will enable nearly 100,000 SMEs to save around 30 billion Hungarian forints ($75.5 million) in the next six months, it said.

In August, the government removed the cap on energy prices, which means that now companies and institutions must pay market prices. Electricity prices have doubled and the price of gas has increased sevenfold, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Monday, Csaba Baldauf, President of the Hungarian Hotel and Restaurant Association, said that 20-25 per cent of the country's hotels planned to temporarily close for the winter due to the rise in energy prices. (1 Hungarian forint = 0.0025 US dollar)