European Commission lifts GDP growth forecast for Poland

2010-02-28



The European Commission has revised upwards its forecast of economic growth in Poland this year. Brussels now expects the Polish economy to expand by 2.6% in 2010, up from 1.8% in its previous forecast in November and by far the highest rate of GDP growth among the seven biggest EU economies, its latest interim forecasts released on 25 February show.
By way of comparison, the EU27 and the eurozone are projected to grow by 0.7%, the UK by 0.6%, Italy by 0.7%, the Netherlands by 0.9%, France and Germany by 1.2%, whereas Spain is expected to experience a contraction of 0.6%.
The Commission notes that the economic recovery in Poland will initially continue to be driven by exports, but domestic demand will take over as the main engine of growth as the year progresses. It expects investment to pick up slowly, driven mainly by robust public demand, and private consumption to make a moderately positive contribution as well, thanks to an increase in social transfers and to better-than-expected labour market situation as sharp wage adjustments protect employment. Inflation as measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) is projected to hit 2.3% (up from 1.9% in the previous forecast).