Poland on Wednesday unveiled a crisis-management package worth some 47 billion euros ($51 billion) to help the EU country's normally vibrant economy weather the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The cash injection will be aimed at safeguarding jobs, businesses, public health services, financial stability and public investment, President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told reporters in Warsaw.
"The estimated value of this programme is 212 billion zlotys," or about 10 percent of the state budget, said Morawiecki, adding that the funds did not come from the European Union. Measures will include the state covering part of employee salaries for hard-hit companies, help with repaying loans and also direct payments for the self-employed plus tax relief. Despite previous forecasts, Poland "will not be able to avoid a budget deficit," said Duda, without elaborating.
Poland's (NBP) central bank chief Adam Glapinski said on Wednesday that a recession was unlikely, although he expects GDP growth to slow significantly to 1.6 percent this year in a worst-case scenario.
Government estimates that did not take into consideration the economic meltdown triggered by the virus saw growth hitting 3.7 percent this year with average annual inflation at 2.5 percent. Poland's (NBP) central bank announced Tuesday that it had cut its main lending rate to an historic low of 1.0 percent in a bid to mitigate the effects of the virus.
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