WARSAW, Jan 3 - Poland's inflation rate increased to 4.8% year-on-year in December, slightly below analysts' expectations of 5.0%. This marks a rise from 4.7% in November. Monthly inflation growth also slowed to 0.2%, down from 0.5% the previous month and below the anticipated 0.4%.
Fuel prices contributed to the inflation figure, while other categories remained stable. Analysts from the Polish Economic Institute (PIE) predict a gradual disinflation throughout the year, although inflation is expected to exceed the target for much of the second half of 2025.
The National Bank of Poland (NBP) recently indicated that average annual inflation could rise to 4.3% in 2025, up from 3.7% in 2024. NBP governor Adam Glapinski has postponed any interest rate cuts until at least 2026, following the government's decision to freeze energy prices until the end of September.
The NBP has kept its policy rate steady at 5.75% since a surprise easing in the fall of 2023.