Poland’s inflation is expected to be in the range of 4.0- 4.5% at the end of 2024, the finance minister has said.
On Friday, Poland’s central bank governor, Adam Glapiński, said that according to the bank’s calculations, the consumer price index (CPI) at the end of the year is expected to be around 5.5% after the anti-inflation shields on energy prices cease to apply.
Later in the day, Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański presented a different scenario.
“I expect that at the end of this year we will have inflation of 4.0%, maybe 4.5%, and then it will gradually decline,” he told state-owned broadcaster TVP Info.
Domański said he was not worried about the negative impact of electricity and gas price increases on inflation. He argued that the price growth this year, owing to the government’s actions, will be one percentage point lower than in 2023 and even if inflation increases, it will be only a slight rise.
The Polish government’s financial plan till 2027 envisages CPI inflation to reach 5.2% this year, and 4.1% in 2025, but without taking into account possible protective measures after energy prices are unfrozen.
Supermarkets’ price war undermining retail sector
Earlier, a leading Polish newspaper had described the effects of a protracted price war between two of Poland’s largest discount supermarket chains, asserting that the price conflict has started to hit the whole retail sector.
The newspaper Rzeczpospolita added that Polish consumers may benefit from this price-slashing conflict between the German-owned chain, Lidl, and its bitter rival, Biedronka, owned by the Portuguese company Jeronimo Martins.
It further stated that the battle has started to suck in other supermarket chains, and is having a negative impact on customers and the broader retail sector.
The price war is forcing all players, including logistics, transportation and marketing, more broadly, to cut costs, the newspaper emphasized.
In short the experience of lower or stable prices is seen by consumers, but the bottom line profitability is high in producers’ and retailers’ minds.
Later in the day, Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański presented a different scenario.
“I expect that at the end of this year we will have inflation of 4.0%, maybe 4.5%, and then it will gradually decline,” he told state-owned broadcaster TVP Info.
Domański said he was not worried about the negative impact of electricity and gas price increases on inflation. He argued that the price growth this year, owing to the government’s actions, will be one percentage point lower than in 2023 and even if inflation increases, it will be only a slight rise.
The Polish government’s financial plan till 2027 envisages CPI inflation to reach 5.2% this year, and 4.1% in 2025, but without taking into account possible protective measures after energy prices are unfrozen.
Supermarkets’ price war undermining retail sector
Earlier, a leading Polish newspaper had described the effects of a protracted price war between two of Poland’s largest discount supermarket chains, asserting that the price conflict has started to hit the whole retail sector.
The newspaper Rzeczpospolita added that Polish consumers may benefit from this price-slashing conflict between the German-owned chain, Lidl, and its bitter rival, Biedronka, owned by the Portuguese company Jeronimo Martins.
It further stated that the battle has started to suck in other supermarket chains, and is having a negative impact on customers and the broader retail sector.
The price war is forcing all players, including logistics, transportation and marketing, more broadly, to cut costs, the newspaper emphasized.
In short the experience of lower or stable prices is seen by consumers, but the bottom line profitability is high in producers’ and retailers’ minds.
Source: PAP, TVP World
