Finance minister says Poland's budget gap to be at 2.9 pct of GDP in 2009

WARSAW (Thomson Financial) - Polish finance minister Zyta Gilowska said today that Poland will cut its general government deficit to 2.9 pct in 2009, in line with the country's convergence plan.

'I maintain the view that in 2009 Poland will reduce its general government deficit to 2.9 pct of the country's gross domestic product (GDP),' Gilowska told parliament.

According to the convergence plan, which presents the path to bring the budget gap below the 3 pct of GDP, Polish deficit will reach 3.1 pct of GDP in 2008, or 0.3 percentage points lower than seen in 2007.

Earlier this month deputy finance minister Katarzyna Zajdel-Kurowska told Thomson Financial News in an interview that Warsaw will update its convergence plan in November and probably lower its forecasts for this year's deficit from the 3.4 pct forecast in April.

Source: By Paweł Sobczak, forbes.com