Borvendég Zsuzsanna: Fabulous Spy Games. How international trade networks with the West developed after 1945 - A Magyarságkutató Intézet Kiadványai 24. (Budapest, 2021)
‘FABULOUS’ IN HUNGARY - End game
FABULOUS SPY GAMES specifics about which experts travelled, from and to where, writing also about the specialised tasks assigned to the individual member states. János Nyerges was also asked to analyse the information in the book and he too concluded that the data were reasonably accurate, but added that the writing was prone to hyperbole about the results that painted a more favourable picture of Comecon than the Common Market.374 While the publishing of the book was welcome news for the party leadership, a review was printed immediately in a relevant Hungarian magazine.375 Up until that point, however, secrecy was the most important aspect of analysis of the book as far as state security was concerned. Given that they were treating Hoffmann as an imperialist spy, they were trying to identify where such sensitive information could have been leaked from, so the possible suspicion of a crime was raised against the sources of information he was in contact with. Three institutes fell under suspicion, none without good reason as it happened, since Hoffmann had close relationships with their staff. Primarily, of course, it was the OMFB, its deputy president Sebestyén and his direct colleagues who could have provided the information, including Nyerges, we must add, but the trade and advertising agency Presto Kereskedelmi és Hirdetési Ügynökség Rt. and the Chamber of Commerce also held the information in question. ‘Fabulous was a frequent visitor to these institutions too. 374 ÁBTL 3.1.5 0-12344/6, p. 195 Report, 12 June 1962 375 See: Vajda 1962 The Presto Foreign Trade Advertising Company was established in 1951 with the aim of advertising Hungarian products intended for export to western countries, although we learned previously that intermediary trade accounted for an increasing share of Hungary’s exports, so the advertisements were intended more to popularise re-exported products and the firms acting as trade intermediaries. By early 1956, the activities of the state firm engaged in advertising were slightly expanded. This was partly to curb the increasing opportunities for corruption arising from commission fees. Presto had relationships with several foreign advertising companies that channelled some of the money paid for the advertisements placed by Hungarian companies - 140
