Investing in Polish markets

Poland has the largest economy in Eastern Europe, with GDP totaling $420 billion in 2007, more than double that of the Czech Republic, and one of the highest levels of foreign investment at $13.9 billion as of 2006. Poland's economy has been growing quickly, at about 6%, for the past 5 years, and was growing at an even faster pace before this. The service sector is expanding, and costs are going up, but manufacturing remains a strength of the Polish economy. In particular, machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles are the major industries in Poland.

The largest industry in Poland by revenues is the chemical manufacture sector. In addition to the chemical industry, Poland has had a very strong presence in manufacturing televisions. Over the last 5 years, Poland has produced from 25 to 35% of TV sets in Europe.

Poland has a highly educated workforce, especially in math and science. This continues to be reflected in high levels of enrollment in universities. Around 65% of the college-age population was enrolled as of 2006. Poland also has one of the largest labor forces in Eastern Europe, at 16.8 million individuals. This is lower only than Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey, and many would not even include these countries in Eastern Europe. Additionally, wages in Poland are low compared to Western European wages. The average wage was around $16,000 annually as of the first quarter of 2008, compared to around $40,000 in neighboring Germany. These factors make Poland an ideal location for sourcing and manufacturing for the broader Eastern European and Western European markets, and this is what many companies do. Approximately 70% of Poland's exports are to other EU countries. This was just under $70 billion in 2005, and it topped $100 billion in 2007 estimates, with about $36 billion going to Germany, Poland's largest export partner. Nearly 30% of Polish workers were involved in industry in 2007, and the industrial sector's share of GDP was equivalent.

Energy and Resources

    * PKN Orlen is a major oil refinery, and as of 2006 was the largest publicly traded company in Central Europe.
The company employs 22,000 and has established operations in Germany, the Investing in the Czech Republic and Estonia

    * Grupa Lotos offers a broad range of oil-based products including diesel, gas, and airplane fuel as well as lubricants and gases

    * KGHM Polska Mied? is the 9th-largest producer of copper and the 3rd-largest producer of silver in the world

Banking

    * PKO Bank Polski, Spó?ka Akcyjna is Poland's bank, but even though it is publicly traded, the state still has 51% ownership of the bank.


Telecommunications

    * Telekomunikacja Polska is the largest telecommunications group in Central and Eastern Europe


Information Technology

    * ComArch specializes in telecommunications, finance, billing, and IT security.