Household income, voluntary savings up – Polish National Bank

The National Bank of Poland (NBP) has released its Q2 report for 2016, and it stated that real incomes increased in Poland by 6.1 percent, y/y. It indicated that about one-third of this increase was due to the “500 +” program. The remainder, the report said, could be attributed to government contracts and increased personal savings. Households' financial assets at the end of the second quarter totalled PLN 1.77 billion, an increase of 3.1 percent, y/y. On the other hand, the NBP noted that private consumption – often expressed in consumer spending habits – had increased by only 3.3 percent compared with the previous quarter. The NBP was optimistic with respect to the level of consumer spending, which it expects to increase in 2017. “The delay part of the payments from the 500+ program and improving consumer confidence, as well as the good situation on the labor market, may indicate accelerating growth trends in consumer demand in the next quarters,” according to the bank.