WARSAW, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Escalating conflict in the Middle East has raised inflationary pressure and weakened Poland's economic outlook by driving up global energy prices, the National Bank of Poland (NBP) said Friday.
In its latest inflation report, the NBP said the energy commodity shock pushed up the consumer price index (CPI) from 2.1 percent year-on-year in January and February this year to 3.1 percent year-on-year in May.
Consequently, CPI inflation in 2026 and 2027 will remain higher than assumed in the previous projection.
According to the central projection path, GDP is expected to grow by 3.7 percent this year, 2.8 percent in 2027 and 3 percent in 2028.
The central bank assumes that economic growth this year will be close to last year's rate, but lower than projected in March.
The NBP said this year's economic growth would be supported by the peak absorption of European Union funds, although the adverse effects of higher global energy commodity prices would weigh on growth.
The Middle East conflict has triggered sharp swings in global energy markets in recent months, posing upside risks to inflation and downside risks to economic growth in Europe. ■
