| Annual data | 2007(a) | Historical averages (%) | 2003-07 |
| Population (m) | 38.1 | Population growth | -0.1 |
| GDP (US$ bn; market exchange rate) | 421.9 | Real GDP growth | 5.1 |
| GDP (US$ bn; purchasing power parity) | 621.0 | Real domestic demand growth | 5.6 |
| GDP per head (US$; market exchange rate) | 11,068 | Inflation | 2.0 |
| GDP per head (US$; purchasing power parity) | 16,291 | Current-account balance (% of GDP) | -2.8 |
| Exchange rate (av) Zl:US$ | 2.8 | FDI inflows (% of GDP) | 4.1 |
Real GDP growth was 6.6% in 2007, up from 6.2% in 2006, but is forecast to slow to 5.4% in 2008 and to an average of around 4.3% per year in 2009-12.
Inflation is rising and price pressures are strengthening. Consumer price inflation is forecast to rise to an average of 4.2% in 2008, but assuming that the National Bank of Poland (NBP, the central bank) continues to raise interest rates, it should return to the NBP’s target of 2.5% by 2011.
Despite continued economic expansion, the previous government’s cuts in social security contributions and increases in social spending are likely to keep the budget deficit relatively high in 2008.
The current government is more positive than its predecessor about Poland’s entry to European economic and monetary union (EMU). However, it will not want the zloty to enter the EU’s exchange-rate mechanism (ERM2) until it is sure that Poland can meet the other Maastricht criteria, and 2012 appears to be the earliest feasible date for the euro to replace the zloty. www.economist.com
The recent surge in demand for workers coupled with the massive scale of labour migration to EU countries has led to shortages of skilled workers in many sectors. As a result, wage pressures increased significantly. The average gross monthly wage jumped by 8% in 2007 compared to a year ago. We should expect further acceleration in wage growth to around 10%. www.polishmarket.com
Poland is considered to have one of the healthiest economies of the post-communist countries, with GDP growing by 6.1% in 2006. Since the fall of communism, Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of liberalising the economy and today stands out as a successful example of the transition from a state-directed economy to a primarily privately owned market economy.
The privatisation of small and medium state-owned companies and a liberal law on establishing new firms have allowed the development of an aggressive private sector. As a consequence, consumer rights organizations have also appeared. Restructuring and privatisation of "sensitive sectors" such as coal, steel, railways, and energy has been continuing since 1990. Between 2007 and 2010, the government plans to float twenty public companies on the Polish stock market, including parts of the coal industry. To date (2007), the biggest privatisations have been the sale of the national telecoms firm Telekomunikacja Polska to France Telecom in 2000, and an issue of 30% of the shares in Poland’s largest bank, PKO Bank Polski, on the Polish stockmarket in 2004.
Poland has a large number of private farms in its agricultural sector, with the potential to become a leading producer of food in the European Union. Structural reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have resulted in larger-than-expected fiscal pressures. Warsaw leads in the Central Europe in foreign investment.[11] GDP growth had been strong and steady from 1993 to 2000 with only a short slowdown from 2001 to 2002.
| Agriculture in Poland - source |
The prospect of closer integration with the European Union has put the economy back on track, with growth of 3.7% annually in 2003, a rise from 1.4% annually in 2002. In 2004, GDP growth equaled 5.4%, in 2005 3.3% and in 2006 6.2%. For 2007, the government has set a target for GDP growth at 6.5 to 7.0%.
Since joining the European Union, many workers have left to work in other EU countries (particularly Ireland and the UK) because of high unemployment, which was the second-highest in the EU (14.2% in May 2006). However, with the rapid growth of the salaries, booming economy, strong value of Polish currency, and quickly decreasing unemployment (8% in March 2008) exodus of Polish workers seems to be over. In 2008 people who came back outnumbered thoses leaving the country.
| Leopard sport-style car designed and produced in Poland - source |
Commodities produced in Poland include: electronics, cars (including the luxurious Leopard car), buses (Autosan, Jelcz SA, Solaris, Solbus), helicopters (PZL Świdnik), transport equipment, locomotives, planes (PZL Mielec), ships, military engineering (including tanks, SPAAG systems), medicines (Polpharma, Polfa), food, clothes, glass, pottery (Bolesławiec), chemical products and others.