Poland

E

Energy

In 2003 Poland had an installed electricity-generating capacity of about 31.9 million kW, and production was about 141.2 billion kWh. In 2003 98.11 per cent of the electricity was generated in plants burning coal; the remainder was produced in hydroelectric facilities.

F

Currency and Banking

The monetary unit of Poland is the złoty of 100 groszy, the basic currency unit (2.48 złotys equalled US$1; early 2008). After the fall of Communism, it became domestically convertible at its real value. After a period of hyperinflation in the early 1990s its exchange rate peaked at about 24,000 to the US dollar. In January 1995 the Polish government replaced the old currency with a new złoty at a conversion rate of 10,000 to one. In an important step in free-market reforms, the new złoty was floated on international currency markets in May 1995, and broadly held its value. The Polish National Bank (Narodowy Bank Polski), founded in 1945, serves as the country’s central bank.

G

Commerce and Trade

In 2003 annual imports were estimated at about US$67,976 million and exports US$53,539 million. Principal imports are machinery and equipment, crude and refined petroleum, electrical power, chemicals, consumer goods, and agricultural products. Major exports are machinery and equipment, basic metals, chemicals, textiles and clothing, and food products. During the Communist period, Poland’s foreign trade was mainly with other Communist countries, particularly the USSR, East Germany (now part of the Federal Republic of Germany along with West Germany), and Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic and Slovakia), but substantial trade was also carried on with the West. Current trade partners include Germany, Russia, the Netherlands, Italy, and the United Kingdom. In 1995 Poland’s foreign debt totalled US$42,200 million. The country has reached debt forgiveness and restructuring agreements with many of its creditors. Foreign investment has been buoyant, with several multinational companies opening or expanding operations in Poland. Privatization receipts in 1997 almost trebled from the previous year, but the overall pace has slowed.

H

Labour

Poland had a labour force of some 17.2 million people in 2006, with approximately 32 per cent employed in manufacturing, mining, and construction; 22 per cent in agriculture and forestry; and 46 per cent in the service sector. Unemployment increased rapidly during the early 1990s, but peaked at a level of around 18 per cent and by 2005 had fallen to 17.7 per cent. Until 1980 all trade unions belonged to the state-sponsored Central Council of Trade Unions. About 85 per cent of the workforce, some 10 million workers, joined free trade unions grouped within Solidarity (Solidarność) in 1980. In May 1981, private farmers were also allowed to organize an independent Rural Solidarity. Both organizations were dissolved during martial law in October 1982, and not legalized again until April 1989. The Communist regime created the All-Poland Alliance of Trade Unions (Polish acronym, OPZZ) during the 1980s. The OPZZ is currently stronger than Solidarity, which has been torn between its political and trade union roles, and had 2.3 million members in the early 1990s. In the 1993 elections, Solidarity failed to gain parliamentary representation.

I

Transport

Poland has a dense network of public roads totalling some 423,997 km (263,460 mi), about 70 per cent of which have a hard surface. Motorways are almost non-existent in Poland, but it is envisaged that 2,500 km (1,554 mi) of toll roads will be constructed over the next 15 years. The Polish section of the A2 motorway from Berlin to Moscow was officially opened in 2003. In the mid-1990s some 7.5 million passenger cars and about 1.4 million commercial vehicles were in use, giving a ratio of 4.3 people per vehicle. The Polish railway system includes about 19,599 km (12,178 mi) of operated track. More than one third of the system is electrified. Poland has about 4,000 km (2,485 mi) of navigable inland waterways; however, this system will require some modernization before being commercially viable. The Wisła, Oder, Bug, Warta, Narew, and Noteć are the principal navigable rivers; about 1,215 km (755 mi) of canals connect the river systems. Major inland ports are Gliwice, Wrocław, and Warsaw. Three major seaports, Gdańsk, Szczecin, and Gdynia, account for nearly all Poland’s maritime commerce. The country’s merchant marine numbered about 351 ships in 2007.

The state airline, Polskie Linie Lotnicze (LOT), provides domestic and international flights, and the country is also served by many foreign airlines. The country has two major international airports: Okecie at Warsaw and John Paul II Balice International at Kraków.