Blog by Michael Clay

PKO BP Sells Over zl.1bn in Mortgages in October

PKO BP bank sold over zl.1 billion in mortgage loans in October, vice president Wojciech Papierak told the PAP news agency.
"Both in September and October sales of mortgage loans exceed zl.1 billion," Papierak said.
The bank said earlier that mortgage sales in Q3 totaled around zl.3.2 billion.

Here in the UK PKO BP has new products to offer both UK residents both Polish and British. Being forward thinking, they are able to provide mortgage loans to buyers of property in Poland with excellent facilities of up to 100% LTV.

At a seminar at PKO's offices in London, at which Michael Clay spoke about the property market in Poland, the range of loan facilities was unveiled. These included a service providing mortgages to Employees, Self employed and Directors of Ltd UK companies.

This seems to be a great step forward for PKO in their efforts to increase business with the UK investor market and whilst in PLN the interest rates should prove to be very competitive.

Contact can also be made with DKM Real Estate in London on +44 (0)208 621 4000 and online at www.dkm.pl. They are abe to provide a member of staff free of charge to help potential borrowers to complete bank application forms.

Economic Fundamentals Point to Stable Zloty - NBP Chief

Poland's economic fundamentals suggest that the zloty should be one of the most stable currencies in the region, although a a high dose of uncertainty exists, central bank NBP head Sławomir Skrzypek told reporters.

"The fundamental of our economy are strong and the zloty has every basis to be stable, one of the most stable currencies in the region," NBP CEO said, offering caveat for a "level of uncertainty on the market that makes any declaration difficult."

Now the Polish Zloty Returns to Appreciation Trend

Poland's zloty started gaining Monday night and will likely continue down that road locals told PAP.

Positive global sentiment, large IPOs by PKO BP bank and PGE power as well as EU funds conversion all contribute to the zloty returning to appreciation trend, Kredyt Bank FX dealer Robert Kęsicki said.

The trend should hold in the coming days, in Kęsicki's opinion.

It seems that every winter the zloty becomes stronger and very summer weaker - is this a normal trend or what is it that influences this phenomena

Poland Sees GDP Growth in Q3 Again

Poland's economy is expected to have grown by some 1% in Q3, deputy Finance Minister Ludwik Kotecki told PAP.

Q2 GDP growth amounted to 1.1%. In late August Kotecki said Q3 result would be lower than the Q2 reading.

Once again, Poland looks like being the LEADING economy within Europe with a GDP that many of the other EU nations would just love to be able to show. How can Poland do this every quarter this year to date when others have failed so miserably?

Perhaps it is the mindset of the Polish Government and its determination to learn from the mistakes that the Western nations have made. Perhaps it is the constant message to the Polish people that they must be aware of the dangers around them in overspending.

Whatever the message is, it seems to be working.

Polish Government Approves Draft 2010 Budget

The budget bill which was passed by the cabinet yesterday leaves the budget deficit intact at 52.2 billion zlotys, "large but safe." as called by the Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski.

The government assumes budget receipts in 2010 at 248.87 billion zlotys versus 245.50 billion zlotys in the earlier draft and increases spending to 301.08 billion zlotys from 297.72 billion zlotys.

Budget revenues will be most affected by decrease in VAT receipts, tax deductions for bio-components, increased excise on cigarettes as well as PIT and CIT changes related to use of company cars, the statement on the budget said.

Poland's economy will grow by 2.8% in 2011, 3% in 2012 and 3.4% in 2013, according to the approved budget bill .

I guess the consumer ends up paying the increases in taxation on Cigarettes, Beer, Wines and Alcohol as well as probable increase in Petrol prices.

Zloty Pressured by Polish Fiscal Outlook

Recent weakness of the Polish zloty is the likely result of negative news on the 2010 budget outlook, Monetary Policy Council member Halina Wasilewska-Trenkner told the daily Gazeta Prawna.

Poland's planned PLN 52.2 billion zloty headline state budget deficit and, more importantly, a broader public finance deficit reaching towards 7% of GDP is "very big, both in nominal terms and as a percent of GDP."

"Countries don't usually gain credibility that way, but their reputation rather worsens," Wasilewska-Trenkner said.

"It is possible that information about the deficit and generally about the shape of the budget for next year will provide temporary downward pressure on the zloty."

Polish Banks Stop War Over Deposits

Polish banking sector is seeing the deposit war come to an end, with largest listed bank PKO BP cutting interest on household deposits by another 0.5 pps this week, the daily Parkiet writes.

Banks are reducing interest rates on deposits because they want to improve their interest income, DM Millennium analyst Marcin Materna stated. As a result, most banks will post a better interest result in Q3 than in Q2, ING Securities analyst Piotr Palenik added.

Perhaps this will mean more mortgages for the Poles and an end to the crisis in the housing market, where the cost of a mortgage had become so high and the loan to values meant high deposits needed to be found.

Poland's Economy Likely to Show Clear Signs of Rebound

Poland's economy is showing mixed signals and likely slowed in Q3, but should be showing clear signs of acceleration in Q4, Monetary Policy Council member Halina Wasilewska-Trenkner said of her economic outlook.

"The real economy is handling things very well and remains active," Wasilewska-Trenkner told PAP in an interview. But with headline inflation holding above the target range, "inflation pressure remains strong in the economy."

Poland will manage to reduce the unemployment rate by 1-2 pps in the next two years thanks to the bill alleviating the effects of the crisis, Labor Minister Jolanta Fedak told reporters.

"If the situation in autumn deteriorates, we have a solution which will allow us to reduce unemployment by 1-2 pps within two years," Fedak said.

Poland plans to spend over 1.5 billion zlotys for public aid in the frame of the anti-crisis package which came into force on August 22, Fedak said. The money will come from guaranteed employment benefits fund.

The unemployment level in July amounted to 10.8% vs 10.7% in June, according to stats office GUS.