Polish business news with a Finnish twist

Hello from Spondeo,

Here's a glimpse of what you will find in this newsletter:

• Economy:?Discover how Polish economy emerged as the strongest in the EU during Q1 of 2023 (even though?not all indicators are positive).

• Finnish business & culture in Poland:?Gain insights into the Finnish perspective on Polish gaming sector and see?how K??rij? ranks in Polish Spotify.

• Politics:?Learn about the promises made by Poland's ruling party ahead of the fall election.

• International investments in Poland:?Explore new hubs, factories, and other Polish projects of companies like Microsoft, Visa, CTP, and TexYear.

• Polish business news:?Read about Poland's energy transformation and investments required to drive this process.

• Culture & society:?Find out all about Polish mission to the moon, survey on chatbot customer service, and more.

Over the last few months,?Spondeo team has been participating in several?customer trips.?This week our colleagues are also touring around Poland with clients, visiting factories and helping to organize various meetings. Such trips are effective not only in terms of sales but also allow to gain a deeper understanding of the market.

We're also super happy to see that?Mannerheim book?has arrived from the printing house - if you want to get your own copy, feel free to contact us!

A lot of fun Finnish events are happening this summer (such as?M?lkky Championship or?Apocalyptica concert). Right now,?we're looking forward the most to?traditional?Finnish Summer Picnic, organized by Finnish Trade Guild?on 3rd June?in Warsaw.

See you soon!

Spondeo Team

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ECONOMY IN POLAND

Inflation?at?14.7%,?interest?rate?unchanged,?PLN surprisingly strong?

1.?Poland's?CPI?inflation?fell to 14.7% y/y in April from?16.1% in March.?

• The prices of goods increased by 15.1% y/y?and services by 13.3% y/y?(1.4% and 0.5% in monthly terms respectively).?Food prices continued to rise?at a rate of 19.7% (24% in March).

• The core inflation?(excluding food and energy prices) has decreased only slightly (12.2% from 12.3% in March).?

According to?NBP, inflation is?expected to decrease throughout 2023,reaching single-digit levels by the end of the year.?

However, the economists from mBank claim that the persistently high core inflation may prevent us from seeing single-digit consumer inflation readings in 2023. Additionally, in their opinion,?there is a significant risk that the downward inflationary trend may reverse in the near future.

2. Poland's?Monetary Policy Council?left?the main interest rate at 6.75%(unchanged since September 2022). This?decision?was?in line with market expectations.

3.?Polish?zloty?reacted with strengthening to much better than expected data on Polish GDP for Q1 of 2023 (see below).?As a result, the EUR/PLN exchange rate fell?below the psychological barrier of PLN 4.50?for the first time since February 2022. Over the last three months,?euro has already become cheaper by over PLN 0.30.

• At the end of April, most analysts assumed that the EUR/PLN exchange rate would not fall below PLN 4.70 until the end of the year.?

• Nevertheless, there are still very few analysts on the market who predict further strengthening of the Polish currency.?The experts from Credit Agricole Bank?believe?that?EUR/PLN exchange rate will increase temporarily at the end of Q2 to PLN 4.60.

• The median of?forecasts?in the Bloomberg database assumes that?at the end of the year euro will cost 4.70.

It is also worth noting that the zloty is strengthening?even though USD has been appreciating against the EUR for several days. In the past, the appreciation of?dollar was usually accompanied by a weakening of emerging market currencies.

As of 30 May 2023:

• 1 EUR?= 4.53?PLN?vs?4.59?PLN in our last newsletter (27.04)

• 1 USD?= 4.22?PLN?vs 4.15?PLN.

/NBP , Gazeta Prawna , Biznes Interia , bankier.pl , money.pl , GUS , Eurostat , Obserwator Gospodarczy /

GDP in Q1 above?market?consensus?

1. According to flash estimate by?GUS,?In Q1 of 2023?Polish GDP?increased by?3.9% in quarterly terms.?This result was significantly better than analysts' forecasts, which assumed an increase of only 0.7%.

The annual data also turned out to be better than expected. Although in Q1 of 2023?Poland's GDP fell by 0.2% y/y?after it increased by 2.3% y/y in the Q4 of 2022,?it was still better than?the forecast of -0.8%?y/y.

2. Surprisingly high?GDP growth the first three months of 2023?makes Poland?a?leader in?the EU.?Compared to?Q4 of 2019, Poland's GDP increased by 11.2%. In France it was?1.3%, similarly in Germany and Spain.?In the UK, the growth was?0.5% lower?than at the end of 2019.

3.?European Commission?revised its annual forecast for?Polish economic?growth in 2023 to 0.7% from 0.4%.?In 2024, Poland's GDP is expected to grow 2.7% y/y.

/GUS , European Commission , Obserwator Gospodarczy /

New data on budget deficit

1. The?budget deficit?after March amounted to?EUR 2.67B.?Budget revenues by the end of March 2023 reached EUR 27.7, which is 20.6% of total?amount planned for the year.?

2.?State budget revenues for 2022 reached?EUR 112B and?expenditures amounted to EUR 115B.?This made it possible to close the budget deficit with the amount of EUR 2.8N?(less the level of EUR 6.6B planned in the budget act).

/Forsal , WNP /

Changes in average and minimum salaries

1. On?1 January 2023, the?minimum salary?in Poland has been?increased to PLN 3,490 (EUR 775)?and?from 1 July it will grow?to PLN 3,600 (EUR 800).

2.?In April 2023, the average number of paid employees in the enterprise sector?increased by 0.4%?compared to April 2022?and by 0.1% compared to previous month.

3. Average gross?salaries in the enterprise sector in April 2023?were 12.1% higher compared to April 2022, amounting to?PLN 7,430?(EUR 1,650).?However, when compared to March 2023, there was a decrease of 1%.

Average corporate gross monthly wage rose by 14.3% y/y?to?PLN 7,124?(EUR 1,583) in Q1 of 2023.?Quarter on quarter, the average wage went up by 5.8 percent.

/GUS , Ministry of Family and Social Policy /

Production & retail in April

1.?In April, the S&P Global Poland Manufacturing?PMI declined to 46.6, down from 48.3 in the previous month,?which was lower than the market's expected value of 47.9.

• The overall operating conditions were negatively affected by decreases in both output and new orders, marking the sharpest decline so far this year.

• Additionally, export orders experienced their most significant decrease since November 2022.

Despite these challenges, companies expressed some optimism?about market stabilization and an increase in demand, contributing to a positive outlook for the future. However, the level of optimism was the lowest in three months, primarily due to concerns about elevated prices.

2.?In April?sold production?of?industry was?lower by 6.4% compared to April last year,?when a yearly?increase of 12.4% was recorded.

In the period January - April this year?sold production of industry was?1.9% lower compared to the corresponding period of 2022

3.?In April 2023,?retail sales?in Poland experienced?a yearly?decline of 7.3%. This figure remained unchanged from the previous month and was lower than the market's forecasted decline of 7.8%.

• Several sectors witnessed a continued slump in sales, including food, beverages, and tobacco products, which saw an 8% decline compared to 4.6% in March.

• Sales of solid, liquid, and gaseous fuels also decreased by 14.5% (compared to 20.7% in the previous month).

• Sales of newspapers, books, and other specialized store items decreased by 15.6% (17.8% in March), while furniture, radio, TV, and household appliances experienced a decline of 14.7% (15.2% in March).

/GUS , S&P ,?Trading Economics /

Value of housing loans applications down by 16.2% y/y in April

1. In April 2023, a total of?20.88k people applied for a housing loans?compared to 28.42k?a year earlier (decrease by 26.5%).?Compared to March, the number of people applying for a housing loan decreased by 6%.

The average value of a housing loan applied for in April this year amounted to EUR 84k and was higher by 8.3% than last year. Compared to March 2023, it was higher by 2.8%.

• According to?Waldemar Rogowski, chief analyst of the BIK Group, although the index is still negative, the?improvement in its?value?began already in September 2022.

• Rogowski believes that the indicator that best shows the current situation of demand for housing loans is the number of applicants. In this regard, April brought a decrease of this figure?compared to March 2023?(-6.0%), but with four working days fewer.?If we converted the number of applicants per working day, in April there would be an increase in relation to March by 13.7%.

2.?The Dom Development Group, leading developer on the Polish market, believes that demand is strong, and?April and May have been good months in terms of sales.?In Q1 of 2023, the Group sold 914 units net (+21% y/y) and delivered 1,350 units (+23%).

/BIK /

FINNISH BUSINESS & CULTURE?IN POLAND

Polish gaming sector from?Finnish perspective

Polish gaming?industry has seen a strong rise in recent years.?There are currently?around 12,000-14,000 people currently employed in?nearly 500 gaming companies in the country.?To compare, in Finland, gaming sector?consists of around 3,000 employees.

In 2019, Poland was?already the world's fourth largest exporter of video games after China, Hong Kong and Japan.?The following year, the crown jewel of the Polish gaming industry,?CD Projekt RED, known for?Witcher?and?Cyberpunk 2077 games, rose as?Europe's largest gaming company with a market value of more than EUR 8B. /YLE/

Would you like to know more about Polish gaming sector? Click the button below.?

Read the article (in Finnish):

Long-awaited book about Mannerheim soon available in Polish

Exciting news!?“Mannerheim – Polish years” by Jukka and Anna Soisalon-Soininen?will be published in Polish in early June.

Carl Gustaf Mannerheim?was a national hero of Finland who commanded Finnish army during the World War II and went on to serve as the president of Finland. As he writes himself, he spent the best years of his life in Poland.

? The book consists of about 400 pages and more than 400 unique pictures.

? It shows how Poland influenced Mannerheim's way of thinking and makes it possible for a reader to look at Poland through his eyes.

? The authors not only cover seven years that Mannerheim spent in Poland, but also reveal his fascinating friendships with Poles, which continued until the end of his life.

Spondeo was happy to support this initiative and help to gather sponsors.

The book was supported by:?Finnish Trade Guild | Ecovis Legal | HT Laser | Leinonen | Miilux | Orion Pharma | Spondeo | Suomen Unipol | WW Technic | YIT | Kalevala

First M?lkky Championship in Poland

The Outdoor European M?lkky Championship will be held in Poland for the first time!

It will be the 7th edition of the European Championship with teams from 12 countries that have confirmed their participation in the event:?Finland, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Czechia, Slovakia, Estonia, Poland, Austria, Ukraine and?Australia.

You can attend the Championship at the Hutnik tennis courts in Warsaw?on June 30th - July 2nd - both as?participant?(registration is open until the end of May!) and as fan. /Polska?Federacja M?lkky/

More information about the event:

K??rij?'s 'Cha Cha Cha' high in?Polish Spotify rankings

Finnish Eurovision song has found many fans also in Poland - 'Cha Cha Cha' has been in TOP 10 songs?played in the country since the end of the?competition.?

K??rij?'s?song also became the first Finnish song to?top Spotify global ranking list. /euronews /

Finnish-Polish dream team: Espeo explains 3 rules of successful cooperation

What would happen if we applied Finnish values in Polish workplace?This was the idea that led?Sylwia Rogowicz?and?Pawel Rogowicz?to found?Espeo Software.

Today the company is helping numerous businesses develop and implement innovative?fintech?solutions from offices in both Poznań and Helsinki. Spondeo asked Espeo about the experience of working in Finnish-Polish team. The results are not what you might expect.

? What do Poles appreciate about their Finnish co-workers?

? Are there any major cultural differences between both cultures?

? What attitudes of Polish and Finnish developers result in synergy?

? What does?Aki Inkeroinen, Managing?Director?of?Espeo?in Finland, think about working with Poles?

Discover these and other surprising insights about working in Finnish-Polish company below:

Navigating digital transformation in Poland with Pagero

By 2024, all businesses registered for Polish VAT will be affected by mandatory e-invoicing.?What does it mean for you company? Spondeo asked?Pagero, the expert in digital solutions, which has recently established local operations in Poland to meet growing demand.

• What do you need to know about the new platform introduced to send and receive e-invoices?

• ?Are there any solutions that can help your company effortlessly adapt to the upcoming changes?

• What are Pagero's expectations towards the Polish market?

• How challenging were the first few months of operations in Poland?

Read the article below?to find these and other first-hand answers from?Andrzej Pijanowski, Country Manager of Pagero Poland.

Read the article:

Finnish movie 'Sisu' now in Polish cinemas

Sisu ?is?a historical action film released in 2023,?both written and directed by Jalmari Helander. The cast features Jorma Tommila, Aksel Hennie, Jack Doolan, and Mimosa Willamo.

Set in Lapland during World War II, the movie tells the story of a renowned ex-Finnish Commando and gold prospector as he embarks on a mission to recover his stolen gold. In addition, he must protect himself from a merciless German death squad commanded by a brutal SS officer. /Interia /

Scandinavian Days in Szczecin

The City of Szczecin, the Scandinavian House, the Scandinavian Meeting Point at Technopark Pomerania in Szczecin and the Embassies of the Scandinavian countries and?Scandinavian-Polish Chamber of Commerce (SPCC) organized annual Scandinavian Days.?

The event was a great opportunity for networking and exploring Scandinavian culture. Mayor of Szczecin met with numerous representatives of Scandinavian business. The participants were able to attend various workshops, exhibitions, meetings, and concerts. /DS 2023 /

Celebrating Finnish Day in Warsaw

The Embassy of Finland together with with Otwarty Jazdów and Towarzystwo Polska-Finlandia celebrated?Europe Week and the Night of Museums by organizing?Finnish Day in Warsaw.?The event was organized in?Jazdów, location of famous wooden Finnish houses in Warsaw.

Numerous attendees had a chance to engage in various Finnish activities,such as?taking?part in a city game, listening to Moomin stories, joining Nordic Walking with Finnish Ambassador P?ivi Laine, competing?in M?lkky tournament, meeting?Asia Kananen - Polish blogger living in Lapland, and enjoying delicious Finnish food. /Finnish Embassy in Poland /

POLITICS

Promises of Poland’s ruling party?ahead of fall election

Ahead of the upcoming parliamentary election in Poland, the conservative ruling party made promises to voters regarding various new benefits, including a significant increase in cash benefits for families with children.

• Jaros?aw Kaczyński, the leader of the Law and Justice party, announced during a party convention that he plans to raise the monthly cash benefit that?parents receive for each child under 18 from PLN 500 (EUR 111) to PLN 800 (EUR 178) starting in January.
• In addition, Kaczynski stated that the Law and Justice party would provide
• free medicine for individuals aged 65 and above, as well as for young people up to the age of 18.?
• He also expressed the party's intention to?eliminate tolls for passenger cars on state highways?as soon as possible and eventually on private motorways.

Having governed Poland for eight years, the Law and Justice party has?gained popularity by increasing spending on social benefits.?However, there are some opposition voices, including economists and members of the business community, who argue against these extensive benefits, citing their contribution to a?significant rise in the cost of living.

Recent opinion polls indicate that while Law and Justice is the most popular party, it may not be able to secure enough votes to govern independently. /APNews /

Poland restricts?the use of single-use plastics

Poland has introduced legislation that?bans the use of numerous single-use plastic items and imposes restrictions on others.?Under the new law, certain single-use plastic products can only be used if a special fee is paid and with a warning label.

These regulations were implemented to comply with an EU directive on single-use plastics, which came into effect in 2019. Poland and ten other member states faced legal action from the European Commission last year for failing to meet the directive's deadline of 2021.

The ban will apply to nine types of single-use plastics: cotton buds, cutlery, plates, straws, drink stirrers, sticks attached to balloons,?food and beverage containers, and cups made from expanded polystyrene.

Any businesses found to be in?violation of these rules will be subject to fines ranging from EUR?2,205 to EUR?110,276.?The severity of the fine will be determined based on the extent of the violation's harmfulness. /Notes from Poland /

INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENTS IN POLAND

Microsoft launches its first datacenter region in Poland

Microsoft made an announcement regarding the opening of their latest trusted cloud region in Poland, the first of its kind in CEE.?It comprises?three separate physical locations surrounding Warsaw,?each housing one or more datacenters. It ensures the utmost standards of security, privacy, and compliant data storage within the nation.

This launch represents a continuation of?Microsoft's longstanding engagement with Poland,?spanning over three decades, and a firm commitment to supporting the country's technological advancement in society, business, and the economy.

The opening of the Polish cloud region is a response to the escalating demand for high-performance computing (HPC) and fast, reliable access to Microsoft Cloud services. The cloud plays a vital role in expediting the digitization process and cultivating digital competence among Polish businesses and the overall economy, thus fortifying their resilience during periods of economic and geopolitical uncertainty. /Microsoft /

CTP will?invest EUR 300M in Poland by the end of the decade

CTP, European logistics developer and operator, has announced its intention?to invest EUR 300M in Germany and EUR 300M Poland by the end of 2030.

The company?plans to invest?in these?countries?as part of its strategy to expand its network of business parks across Europe, with the goal of doubling its presence by 2030.

In Poland, the company's plan involves?increasing its development pipeline and making acquisitions to further strengthen its presence in the country. /IPE Real Assets /

Visa will open new?Tech?and Product Hub in Poland

Visa,?a leading company in digital payments, has announced its plans to establish a new Technology and Product Hub in Poland. Over the next few years,?the company aims to hire up to 1,500 professionals in technology and product roles?as part of its global investment strategy to support innovation and drive growth in digital commerce and payments.

Visa recognizes Poland as a growing hub for top technology talent and sees it as an opportunity to further their commitment to innovation and investment in the European region. By leveraging emerging talent, accelerating product development, and promoting large-scale innovation, Visa aims to create value for consumers, clients, buyers, and sellers worldwide. /Visa /

The first compostable straw manufacturing factory opened in Poland

TEX YEAR,?Taiwanese company that specializes in producing adhesives and environmentally friendly materials, has just opened?Poland's first factory for manufacturing compostable straws.?The company partnered with Minima Technology, Taiwan's largest manufacturer of compostable tableware and food packaging, to establish a Polish?factory.?

The factory?is expected to become operational in H1 of?2023.?It will specialize in producing biodegradable straws made from plant-based polymers that are naturally biodegradable. These straws have been certified free of Biphenyl A, phthalates, and other plasticizers.

TEX YEAR, being a supplier of green materials, is the first Taiwanese material manufacturer to establish a factory in Poland as part of the initial wave of Taiwanese investments in Europe.?TEX YEAR established its branch in the city of Gniezno?to provide prompt service to the European market. /TexYearGroup /

Europe’s largest factory for energy storage solutions established in Poland

Polish branch of?Swedish company?Northvolt?completed the construction of the Northvolt II factory in Gdańsk.?The construction has been ongoing since the end of 2021.?

A portion of the factory will be automated, including the use of self-driving forklifts.?Production at the facility is expected to start at the end of 2023, after the completion of equipping offices, laboratories, and assembly lines. The official opening will take place at that time as well.

Northvolt will manufacture stationary and mobile energy storage systems, as well as battery systems for industrial purposes in Gdańsk. Among the company's clients in Poland is Siemens.?

At the current stage, the production capacity of the facility will reach 5 GWh annually.?According to Northvolt, it?makes?the investment in Gdańsk potentially the largest energy storage factory in Europe.?The production capacity is expected to increase in the future, with plans for the expansion of the facility and an increase in production capabilities to 12 GWh annually. /Green-News , Reuters /

Klarna introduced deferred payments in Polish physical stores for the first time?

Swedish fintech Klarna has introduced its?flagship service "Pay in?30 days" to Wojas?brick-and-mortar stores in Poland.?

Polish customers have already had?the possibility of postponing payments without additional costs in online stores.

The Wojas brand, one of the largest footwear manufacturers in Poland,?will provide customers with the option of deferring payments at all points of sale and in the e-shop as the first company on the market. Klarna's flexible payments (online and in-store) allow buyers to pay for products after 30 days, interest-free. /inwestycje.pl /

Kongsberg Maritime will open R&D center in Szczecin

A Norwegian group that works for companies from?maritime, defense,?aviation, and other?industries,?will employ 60 specialists in the new facility?as software engineers, testers and managers.?Kongsberg Maritime?has been operating in Szczecin since 2005.

The company will receive?EUR 165k?for this investment as a?a government grant?from the Program for supporting investments of significant importance for the economy.

• Advice on state aid and handling applications for it were provided by?Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH). Last year, over 70 BSS/R&D projects supported by the Agency received a positive investment decision.
• The number of companies creating research and development centers in Poland is growing by several percent annually.?Gross domestic expenditures amounted to EUR 8.4B?in 2021,?and expenditures on activities in the field of engineering and technical sciences accounted for almost half of this sum.

/Puls Biznesu /

Enefit Volt will expand the public charging network to Poland

Estonian Enefit Volt?aims to address the main obstacle to clean transportation, which is poor infrastructure, by initiating the construction of a charging network across Poland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.?Their goal is to eliminate the lack of public charging stations, which has proven to be a greater concern for people than the price of electric cars, as the costs of owning electric and combustion engine vehicles are becoming comparable.

Over the next two years, Enefit Volt plans to install?over 1,000 new public chargers,?making them one of the largest providers of charging services in the four countries.

To enhance the user experience, all new chargers will accept card payments, and customers will have the option of one-time payment through a web link, which can be utilized at existing chargers.?/Enefit Volt /

Alarm.com?acquired?EBS, Polish smart communicator company

Alarm.com?is American company that offers cloud based services for remote control, monitoring services and home automation. It?acquired EBS?with the intention of expanding its reach in international markets.

EBS?specializes in the development and production of smart communicators. With over three decades of experience, Polish company has established a strong reputation for its manufacturing capabilities in this field.?/CEPro /

PSA BDP expands to Poland

PSA BDP, based in the US, is a prominent provider of globally integrated supply chain, transportation, and logistics solutions. The company?has recently opened?its first Polish office in Gdańsk.

Poland serves as a crucial gateway to CEE, making the Gdańsk office strategically positioned to connect vital transportation hubs in the region. Leveraging the robust transportation infrastructure in Gdańsk, PSA BDP aims to enhance logistics flow significantly for customers in sectors such as chemicals, retail and consumer goods, life sciences and pharmaceuticals, as well as electric vehicles and industrial goods.

Baltic Hub houses one of Europe's largest rail facilities and serves as the closest port to the Czech Republic and Slovakia.?Capitalizing on its proximity to this strategic hub, PSA BDP can provide enhanced connectivity and more cost-effective and environmentally friendly solutions to customers seeking to minimize their carbon footprint. /PSA BDP /

Global leader in Digital Engineering?opens its?first office in?Poland

Persistent Systems,?global leader in Digital Engineering, recently opened its first office in Kraków, Poland as part of its expansion strategy in Europe.?

The facility?will play a crucial role in driving digital transformation for clients across industries, while also providing local IT professionals with opportunities to advance their careers by working on cutting-edge software products and digital solutions.

Persistent Systems plans to expand its Engineering Center by hiring professionals with diverse skill sets, including cloud and product engineering, data and analytics, and customer experience experts. /Persistent Systems /

From Chicago to Kraków - project44?

project44,?the top-rated platform for supply chain visibility, has announced the official opening of its newest European hub, a large and modern office located in?Kraków, Poland.

The company already?employs over 100?experts?in technology and supply chain logistics in Kraków office.

The mission of project44 is to ensure uninterrupted supply chains. The visibility platform offered by project44 monitors over a billion shipments annually and is trusted by more than 1,200 leading brands, including companies in the manufacturing, automotive, retail, food, chemical, and industrial sectors. /kraków.pl , Yahoo /

POLISH BUSINESS NEWS

Poland's energy transformation requires large?investments?

According to the report of EY?prepared for the Polish Electricity Association,?investments in the energy transformation by 2030 will amount?up to EUR 135B.?

It means that the investment potential of domestic energy companies is too small to finance a full energy transformation. The report shows that after taking into account additional sources of financing,?the investment gap will reach EUR 77B, but it can be mostly filled with money from European funds.

However, in no scenario EU funds will cover the gap in 100%.?As?a result, it will amount to no less than EUR 8B.

The calculations indicate that in the long-term, the scale of investments and challenges faced by the Polish energy sector aiming to?achieve zero emissions in 2050 may amount to as much as EUR 200B. /Business Insider /

Central European Hydrogen Technology Forum?in Poznań

The second?Central European Hydrogen Technology Forum H2POLANDtook?place from 16 to 17 May at the Poznań Congress Center.

H2POLAND?is the first exhibition in CEE that focuses exclusively on hydrogen technologies. This event serves as a platform for sharing knowledge through conferences and debates, complemented by an exhibition showcasing the most recent advancements in the field of low and zero-emission economy solutions.

• The?participants at the event emphasized?the?importance of cross-sectoral collaboration?for the advancement of hydrogen technology.?
• The advantages of hydrogen energy were also evident in the exhibition area of H2POLAND, further shoing?its potential. /H2Poland /

7 reasons why Poland is becoming European superpower

What lies ahead for Poland in the near future? According to The Telegraph, the country is on its way to become wealthier than the UK by 2030.?

The author of the article describes his gloomy impression of Poland in 1989, right after the fall of communist era. A lot has changed since then and things are expected to look even better in the next few years.?

You might have heard about the Polish post-communist economic boom but what exactly put Poland on track to become the new central European superpower?

1. Polish economy has been growing faster than in richer European countries.?GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power in Poland is now €32,455, compared with €40,282 in the UK and €45,806 in Germany.
2. Poland has become?a hub for modern industries?such as tech and battery manufacturing, and the country even has a trade surplus with Germany.
3. Living standards?in cities like Warsaw or Wroclaw are already similar to those in London or Berlin.
4. Polish economic migrants are returning to the country because of?improved quality of life, numerous exciting job opportunities and lower living costs than in Western Europe.
5. The country has a?quality education system?and regularly ranks better than Germany, France, or the UK in math, science, and reading.?
6. Firm stand against Russian aggression?and generous support towards Ukrainian refugees has won Poland many allies.
7. Polish?military strength?is improving with defense spending higher than in countries such as Germany, Britain, and France. Poland plans to double the number of soldiers to 300,000 and heavily invests in modern weaponry.

/The Telegraph /

7 technological areas with greatest impact on Polish economy in the near future

According to the analysis by Institute??ukasiewicz in Warsaw,?telemedicine and intelligent agriculture?are sectors with the biggest potential to develop Polish economy.?

• Remote patient monitoring?was rated as a top single technology, both in terms of its readiness for development in Poland and its potential benefits. The virtual medical diagnosis sector is expected to grow dynamically by up to 15% annually in the next decade.
• Intelligent agriculture?was rated the highest as a general group of various technologies that are particularly important in face of civilization challenges related to global warming and potential food crisis. The global demand for food is expected to rise by as much as 60% by 2050.
• Other technological trends with the largest potential for Polish economy include:?smart grids, FoodTech, nanomaterials and nanotechnologies, drone technologies, and hydrogen use in steel production.

Institute ?ukasiewicz recommends to increase funding in the listed areas, adapt regulations to meet the needs of technological trends, and stimulate competencies to gain market advantage.?/Orgmasz /

CULTURE & SOCIETY

What do Poles think?about chatbot customer service?

Almost 2/3 of Poles declare that when contacting the customer service department, they came across a chatbot or voice bot based on artificial intelligence. This form of service is more often accompanied by negative (42.6%) than positive (17.1%) emotions.

• Nearly 3/4 of Poles also declared that they would rather wait in line for human service than be immediately served by a bot.
• After contact with a bot, Poles most often (31%) feel frustrated.?In turn, 15% of respondents declared satisfaction with the service provided by the bot.?40.3% of Poles served by bots express a neutral opinion about them.

The percentage of Poles feeling frustrated with a chatbot is almost half as low as in the world, where, according to a recent UJET study, as many as?80% of consumers feel discomfort after contacting a bot in the service department.?

The positive experiences associated with the bot service most often indicated by Poles include:?24/7 availability (35%), efficient connection with the consultant if the bot fails to solve the problem (28%) and quick responses to questions (22%). /SWResearch /

Polish mission to the moon

Grzegorz Wrochna, president of the Polish Space Agency POLSA,?confirmed that?preparations for the implementation of the first ever Polish mission to the Moon are already?underway.?Polish space sector can demonstrate extensive experience in building various research instruments that have already flown into space in over 80 missions to various bodies of the Solar System.?

The plans include?sending an advanced probe into the orbit of the Moon.Its task will be to scan the surface with a beam of infrared radiation and search for deposits of valuable raw materials that can be used in the development of the era of space mining. Only a few of the richest countries want to implement such projects.?

If the mission?is successful, POLSA will start working on sending the first rover in?history of Poland to the lunar surface. The plan is to organise the?first technical mission to the Moon within 5-6 years. /Interia /

Polish and Finnish children most fluent readers in the EU

Polish and Finnish students, aged 9 and 10,?achieved the?best score (549) among EU countries in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS).?Both?countries ranked fifth among all 41 analyzed countries.

• Poland has shown?considerable improvement?in the rankings, moving up from 29th place in 2006 and 28th place in 2011 to sixth place in 2016, and now securing the 5th position.
• The?study also highlighted a gender disparity observed in Poland, as in other nations, with girls obtaining higher scores (560) compared to boys (540).

These?findings mirror those of another prominent global educational achievement ranking, PISA. In the most recent PISA assessment conducted in 2018,?Polish students were ranked?third best in Europe for mathematics and science, and fourth best for reading comprehension.

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