Polish joblessness sinks, retail sales soar

Poland's unemployment rate fell to 19.3 percent in July from 19.5 percent in June while retail sales soared by 10.3 percent, official figures showed Monday. The data confirm a broader picture of strong economic growth in Poland, the largest of the eight former communist countries to join the European Union May 1. The statistical office also said it expected gross domestic product to grow by around 6 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of the year after year-on-year growth of 6.9 percent in the first quarter. Economists have been closely watching Polish statistical data recently for clues about the prospects for further interest rate hikes. The statistical office said it expected year-on-year inflation to come in at around 4.8 or 4.9 percent in August, up from 4.6 percent in July.