Polish Premier Says Economic Performance May Beat Forecasts

(Bloomberg) -- Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki is optimistic that the country’s economy will perform better than expected by analysts this year, thanks in part to government relief efforts.

The European Union forecast a 4.3% decline in Poland’s gross domestic product in 2020, the best performance expected among the bloc’s 27 nations during the coronavirus pandemic. The median forecast from a Bloomberg survey of economists shows it shrinking by 3.8% this year.

“Most financial institutions predict about a 4% fall in GDP,” Morawiecki told radio RMF on Saturday. “I hope that it will be lower than forecasts.”

The premier, who this week said the country’s “anti-crisis shield” will total 400 billion zloty ($102 billion) in relief and subsidies, or about 17% of GDP, expects the unemployment rate to stay in the single digits throughout 2020.

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