According to the latest data from the economics ministry, GDP growth for Poland in 2009 is expected to be between zero and one percent. This puts Poland in a very exclusive club, as very few developed countries in the world will experience positive GDP growth in 2009. Looking ahead, the government has announced the approval of a draft budget for next year, which is based on an expected 0.5% GDP growth and 1% inflation. Amid the global economic crisis, the government expects unemployment to rise to 13.8% by the end of 2010 and corporate employment is expected to fall by 2.8%.

Whilst the government led by Donald Tusk is still maintaining that Poland will be aiming for entry to the Euro currency in 2012, senior politicians are expressing reservations that this will not be attainable. Joining the currency mechanism ERM2 in the second half of 2009 could be unfavorable for the economy, according to central banker, Jan Czekaj. "If Poland entered the ERM2 mechanism, the zloty would probably strengthen and that is not what we really want now," he said, explaining that "the weaker zloty helps our economy to go through the crisis smoother although it increases inflation a bit." Referring to the change in MPC comments on the euro adoption, Czekaj explained that joining the euro in 2012 seems rather unrealistic as the EU is not likely to lower the criteria for Poland.

The Polish zloty continues to be weak against the major currencies. At present, it is trading at approximately 4.5 PLN to the EUR, 3.25 against the USD and 5.3 against GBP.

Interest rates in Poland have stabilized, with the benchmark 3mth WIBOR rate currently standing at approximately 4%. Analysts believe further rate cuts by the central bank to be unlikely in the near future.