Tuesday, 14 May 2013 20:51
Posted by Muhammad Iqbal
WARSAW: Central European leader Poland got off to a weaker than expected start this year, quarterly data showed on Tuesday, amid expectations that central banks in the region will further cut interest rates to boost demand and spur a sluggish recovery.The only EU member to have grown each year over the last two decades, Poland mustered just 0.1 percent growth in the first quarter, initial official data showed, after zero growth in the last quarter of 2012.Analysts pointed to a sharp decline in construction as contributing factor to the doldrums, highlighting trade as a positive driver and room for further interest rate cuts to bolster consumption."The weak state of domestic demand in Poland means that the economic recovery is likely to be sluggish," London-based Capital Economics analysts said in a Tuesday statement. "As such, we expect interest rates to fall further," they added.Poland's central bank (NBP) cut its key interest ...