Export Britain

Poland

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Ease of trading across borders

Importing a standard container of goods into Poland requires:

Introduction

Poland has one of the fastest growing economies in the EU. With a strong domestic market, low private debt, a exible currency, and no dependency on a single export sector, Poland is the only European economy to have avoided recession between 2008 and 2013. As part of the trans-European road network and the Schengen zone, Poland o ers access to 250 million consumers within a radius of 1,000 kilometres.

Economic snapshot (% annual growth rate)

	2015	2016	2017-20
GDP	3.7	3.1	3.2
Exports of goods and services	6.8	8.5	5.5
Import of goods and services	6.3	9.2	6.2
Inflation	-0.9	-0.6	1.9
Current account balance (% of GDP)	-0.2	-0.1	-1.8
Population	0.2	0.2	0.2
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook Database, Oct 2016

Economic outlook

GDP continued to accelerate, growing by 3.2% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2014. The Russian embargo on EU food products has hit Polish producers, pushing inflation into negative territory. While the value of Polish exports to Russia represents less than 5% of the total, many Polish manufacturers form part of the supply chain for German manufacturers, so continued trade sanctions against Russia may slow down Poland's growth rate. The Ministry of Finance revised its GDP forecast for 2014 downward from 3.8% to 3.4% in September, as the EU's sanctions and Russian counter-sanctions deepened. Poland is expected to continue growing faster than the economies of Western Europe until at least 2030.

Trade outlook

The bulk of Poland’s goods exports will continue to be bought by large European countries like Germany, the UK, France and Italy as a result of the EU single market. In the short term at least, trade with Russia is being hit by sanctions and counter-sanctions. Although they are likely to remain a small proportion of total exports, the most dynamic trade relations will be with emerging Asia and with Africa. China may displace the US among Poland’s principal non-EU export destinations in the longer term, although the US fully appreciates the potential of Poland as a trade partner.

SWOT analysis

Strengths onsistently strong GDP growth. Well-diversified economy. Strong and improving education system.	Weaknesses Lack of transparency of government regulation. Inefficient bureaucracy and public procurement process.
Opportunities EU-funded programmes infrastructure development advanced manufacturing.	Threats Ongoing euro-zone crisis (destination of 53.4% of Poland's exports) worsening economic relations with Russia (destination of 4.4% of Poland's exports)

Opportunities for UK businesses

Investors tend to choose Poland because of its location at the heart of continental Europe, part of the trans-European road network, within the Schengen zone, and with easy access to 250 million consumers within a radius of 1,000 kilometres. Poland is a significant market of 38 million consumers offering opportunities for UK businesses in particular within the following sectors: engineering, electronics, software, life sciences, transport, retail, food and environmental sectors. 

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