Banking climate index reaches seven-year low as future seen uncertain

Poland's banking climate index Pengab fell to a seven-year low of 30.7 points in January, as bankers expressed uncertainty about the future. The index is calculated based on a survey of some 200 bank managers, conducted by polling institute Pentor. It gauges the difference between positive and negative answers to whether the situation in the banking sector has improved or worsened over the previous month. Bankers were also polled on their opinion about former National Bank of Poland (NBP) president Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, with 23% saying their opinion is very positive and 62% evaluating Gronkiewicz-Waltz fairly positively. Meanwhile, 56% of bank managers polled believe that her successor at the post of NBP head, Leszek Balcerowicz, will be neither better nor worse. (Rzeczpospolita, p.B5, Reuters) T.J.