The staff of the troubled Liberty Częstochowa steelworks in southern Poland received notice on Wednesday of a 40% cut in their August wages amid hopes that a buyer or new leaseholder will come forward before a September deadline, TVPWorld.com. The British-owned mill was declared bankrupt at the request of its creditors on July 25. The new, lower rates of pay will remain in place while a new leaseholder is sought to take control of the century-old mill. The receivers have set a deadline of September 1 for finding a new tenant or beginning the sell-off of its assets.
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Poland
Poland’s Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski expects the country will face the European Union’s procedure for its excessive deficit last year, Bloomberg News reported. Domanski told reporters on Monday he hopes the EU’s executive will be lenient in demanding budget cuts because the government needs to increase defense spending. “The procedure will be definitely launched,” he said on the sidelines of a financial congress in Sopot, northern Poland.
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Poland’s ruling coalition said it’s aiming to ensure that the nation avoids a scenario under which the level of government debt breaches a limit imposed by the European Union, Bloomberg News reported. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s administration is now working on a draft fiscal plan following eight years of Law and Justice government. This year’s budget sees the debt at 54% of gross domestic product, while the Finance Ministry said there is a risk that the level of 60% may be breached in the next few years.
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Lawmakers with Poland’s ruling pro-European Union coalition launched a rare process Tuesday to bring the central bank chief before a special court on allegations of acting against the country’s financial interests, the Associated Press reported. The result could ban him from political life. Critics of the effort suggested that the ruling coalition was going too far in its attempts to reverse the actions of Poland’s previous right-wing government, which were widely seen as undemocratic, and hold those responsible to account.
Poland’s top constitutional court, dominated by judges appointed by the former ruling nationalist, quashed plans by Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government to try the central bank governor in the latest blow to the new pro-European administration, Bloomberg News reported. Lawmakers can’t suspend Governor Adam Glapinski under parliament’s current rules and would need to pass a law requiring a three-fifths majority for a motion to pass, the same threshold as for cabinet members, Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal ruled on Thursday.
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Poland's culture minister has decided to put its state television, radio and news agency into liquidation, he said on Wednesday, deepening a dispute over the future of publicly owned media after a momentous change in government, Reuters reported. A pro-European Union coalition headed by Donald Tusk took power in Poland this month and started an overhaul of state media institutions which critics say had become propaganda outlets during the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party's eight years in power.
Poland is set to receive more than 5 billion euros ($5.5 billion) in EU funds after the European Commission gave a positive assessment Tuesday of the country's revised recovery plan that includes green reforms and investments, the Associated Press reported. The 5.1 billion euros pre-financing is part of the bloc's REPowerEU program aimed at helping the 27 EU nations recover from the energy crisis that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, and reduce their dependance to Russian fossil fuels.
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Poland’s central bank left interest rates unchanged, unexpectedly halting its easing cycle in the first decision since the country’s pro-European opposition secured a majority in last month’s election. The zloty gained, Bloomberg News reported. Governor Adam Glapinski and the rate-setting Monetary Policy Council kept the main rate at 5.75%, defying a majority of economists surveyed by Bloomberg, who predicted a quarter-point reduction. The move comes as declining inflation remains above target — and the opposition under Donald Tusk prepare to take power after eight years of nationalist rule.
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Poland’s central bank lowered its key interest rate Wednesday, pointing to a drop in inflation despite a still-high rate of 8.2% last month, raising concerns about the cut being a political move, the Associated Press reported. The National Bank of Poland cut its benchmark rate a quarter of a percentage point to 5.75%. Analysts were expecting it after annual inflation dropped last month from 10.1% in August. Inflation was over 18% earlier this year. It was the second rate cut since Sept. 9, when the central bank surprisingly slashed rates by three-quarters of a point.
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The steep rout in eastern European currencies is raising speculation among market strategists that policymakers will have to slow their plans to ease monetary policy, Bloomberg News reported. The Polish currency dropped 0.7% against the euro, extending its decline to 4% in the past week after a bigger-than-expected rate cut roiled markets. With Hungary already months into an easing cycle and the Czech Republic weighing when it should embark on its own, the three countries led losses across emerging markets.
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