Headline industrial output rose 1.8% in February, increasing for the first month in about a year.
Prices in the alcohol and tobacco sector increased by 19% y/y, including the 9.1% spike in tobacco prices as a result of the new consumption tax.
The inflation rate landed within the National Bank of Poland’s target of 1.5%-3.5% for a second successive month
After spiking to 20-year highs thanks to the pandemic and Europe’s Russian induced energy crisis, inflation rates across the EU have tumbled in recent months. That trend has ended and CEE central banks are expected to hike rates again in 2H24.
Consumer prices in Hungary rose 3.6% y/y in March, but services' prices rose almost 10%.
Industrial production increased by 0.4% month-on-month.
Consumer price indices (inflation) in Czechia remained at 2% in March, the same year-on-year growth as in February, which is the lowest inflation rate since December 2018.
On Monday, 8 April, Germany sent an advance team of 20 soldiers to Lithuania, laying the groundwork for the recently discussed establishment of a permanent brigade in the Nato country, Statista reports.
Czech has long been the country with the lowest unemployment level in the EU.
A new analysis by the energy think-tank Ember has found that several countries in Europe could soon face bottlenecks in their national transmission energy grids, as more solar and wind power will be generated than these networks have capacity for.
The country’s robust car sector pushed an otherwise unconvincing result into growth.
Winter is over, as the EU gas tanks switch from withdrawals to filling mode again in preparation for next winter. Injection into the gas tanks started on April 1, a week earlier than in 2023 and started at an all-time high record level of 59.3% full.
Poland's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) inched up 0.1 points to 48 in March (chart), the economic intelligence company S&P Global said on April 2.
Czechia’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index, compiled by market intelligence company S&P Global, continued to inch upward in March, posting 46.2.
Polish CPI grew 1.9% year on year in March (chart), below the consensus line of 2.1% y/y and 1.1pp below the February reading, a flash estimate from Poland’s statistical office GUS showed on March 29.
Poland exported 115,000 tonnes or 13% of the EU’s total chocolate exports in 2023.
Czech GDP increased in the fourth quarter by 0.4% quarter on quarter and by 0.2% year on year following a revision by the Czech Statistical Office.
Bulgaria has the EU's lowest labour cost, while Romania still lags well behind Poland and Hungary.
Romania has been catching up with the EU average faster than Hungary, which fell into recession in 2023.
Policymakers had discussed three options, a 50bp, 75bp and 100bp cut, and decided unanimously on the 75bp one, deputy governor Barnabas Virag said after the rate decision.