Polish PMI suffers biggest decline in nearly three years in May

Poland's Purchasing Managers' Index dropped sharply to 47.1 in May from 50.2 in April, marking the steepest monthly decline in nearly three years.

Czech PMI drops to 48 in May, returning to downward trajectory

The Czech manufacturing PMI index compiled monthly by the S&P Global market intelligence company posted 48 in May, in a disappointing drop from 48.9 in April, when PMI posted its highest since 2022, and ended the upward trajectory from recent months.

Czech GDP increases by 2.2% y/y in Q1 after refinement

Czech statisticians refined the growth of the country’s gross domestic product to 2.2% year on year in the first quarter of this year, which is an improvement on the 2% preliminary estimate from last month.

Polish CPI growth eases to 4.1% as room expands for deeper interest rate cuts

Poland’s CPI eased to 4.1% year on years in May from 4.3% y/y the preceding month, the country’s statistical office GUS said in a flash estimate on May 30.

Poland’s GDP per capital more than doubles since joining the EU – OWID

In May 2004, ten countries joined the European Union in its largest expansion. These new members entered the EU’s internal market, allowing the free movement of goods, services, capital and people.

Polish retail sales surge in April

Polish retail sales grew 7.6% year on year at constant prices in April, beating the consensus, which had expected a 3.4% annual increase, the statistics office GUS said on May 26.

Drill down into Poland’s presidential election voting patterns

Poland’s presidential election will go to a second-round run-off after centrist candidate Rafał Trzaskowski and conservative Karol Nawrocki finished in a close contest in the May 15 first round.

Slovak unemployment dropped to 3.71% in April

Unemployment in Slovakia (PDU) dropped by 0.01 percentage point month-on-month to 3.71% in April, reaching the lowest level of unemployed persons on record since 1993 for the second consecutive month.

EC slashes Hungary's growth forecast to lowest in region, below tepid EU average

Hungary's economic recovery remains sluggish, with the country projected to significantly underperform its Central European neighbours in both growth and investment, according to the European Commission's spring forecast.

Borsa Istanbul leads world markets in dollar-basis losses

Turkey’s exchange-traded fund down 9.5% in year-to-date. Thai performance second worst at 6.5%.

Polish economy grows 3.8% in first quarter as momentum holds steady

Polish GDP grew 3.8% year on year in the first quarter of 2025, slightly below the revised 3.9% increase recorded in the previous three months, seasonally adjusted data from the Central Statistical Office showed in a flash estimate on May 15.

Slovak inflation eases to 3.7% y/y in April

Czech unemployment stagnates at 4.3% in April

Czech unemployment remained at 4.3% in April, the same level as in March. Year on year, the unemployment increased by 0.6 percentage point, or by 38,462 persons.

Slovak industry returns to growth of 3.5% y/y in March

Slovakia’s industrial output increased by 3.5% year on year and by 0.7% month on month in March, registering the first month of growth this year.

Hungary's CPI falls to 4.2% in April as food price controls take effect

War is a growing concern across Europe – Statista

VE Day, or Victory in Europe Day, is celebrated on May 8 each year to mark the formal end of World War II in Europe, reports Statista.

Czech industry output increases by 1.4% y/y in March

Czech industrial production increased by 1.4% year-on-year and by 0.4% month-on-month in March (chart), driven by electricity production and maintaining the growth trajectory.

Czech National Bank cuts by 25bp as easing cycle comes to an end

The Czech National Bank reduced its base interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.5% on May 7, marking its fourth consecutive rate cut and signalling that the easing cycle is nearing its end, ING said in a note on May 7.

Hungary’s retail recovery slowed in March despite government intervention in food prices

Hungary’s retail sector lost some momentum in March, with sales volumes falling 0.5% from the previous month despite the government-introduced profit margin cap in effect from the middle of the month.

Investment plans of German-owned companies slump to post-crisis low

Hungary’s German business community is growing increasingly pessimistic, with corporate investment sentiment hitting its weakest level since the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.