Latest output figures encourage analysts' to play up growth

Analysts have again increased their GDP forecasts for 2003, believing it will grow at over 3%, after industrial output figures rose by 7.8% in June. The construction sector has also picked-up, with sales 16% higher than in May 2003 and only 1.2% worse than last year. All these symptoms signal that the economy has finally emerged out of stagnation. For the first half of 2003, industrial sector sales were up by 6.7% as compared to the same period last year in 20 out of 29 branches. In some areas, such as furniture, vehicles, chemical and rubber goods, the rate of growth was close to 20%. In general, these branches export a majority of their production, which according to the Main Statistical Office (GUS), grew by 21% in złoty terms and 3.7% in Euro's over the first five months. "This might be the beginning of an economic boom," said the chief economist of Bank Millenium Mirosław Gronicki. (Rzeczpospolita, pp. A1, B1) M.M.