Marek Belka, NBP president COURTESY OF THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

Marek Belka, the president of the National Bank of Poland, said that data published by statistics office GUS on Monday show that Poland's economic slowdown may be coming to an end. “Probably already now we are in a phase of a gradual, I stress gradual, rebound,” Mr Belka told Bloomberg. “I think the worst is over,” he added.

The central banker said that his personal prediction for Poland's GDP growth in 2013 is 2 percent but he “might be pleasantly surprised.”

Signs the slowdown is approaching its end are mounting. Mr Belka said this month that the monetary-easing cycle in nearing a pause. Industrial production unexpectedly rose 0.3 percent in January after decreasing 10.6 percent in December, the lowest since 2007, amid improving business confidence in Germany, Poland’s biggest export market. Retail sales rose 3.1 percent in January from a year earlier, led by spending on cars, pharmaceuticals and at supermarkets.

Poland A.M.