Coronavirus and the Visegrád countries – Polish and Czech expectations

Polish central bank Governor Adam Glapinski said that the Polish economy is capable of withstanding the coronavirus crisis, since “Poland’s debt is low, so we have room to maneuver.”

At a joint press conference with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Glapinski warned that Poland may face a risk of deflation and needs to prepare for the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and potential “economic wars” between the central banks of different nations as they try to secure their own economies.

The National Bank of Poland cut interest rates earlier in the day. Glapinski said he might consider further cuts to stimulate the economy while also buying up debt from the state treasury and refinancing bank loans taken by businesses.

“As part of our mandate, we will do the utmost to soften any economic crisis for Poland so we can get out of it as soon as possible and to return to the path of rapid development,” Glapinski said. “This crisis is without precedence, global, and it is hard to predict its scale.”

The official death toll of COVID-19 rose by 30 in Poland on Wednesday, making it the deadliest single day of the epidemic so far, taking the total toll to 159. The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 5,205.

The numbers triggered a political controversy, however, as Mayor of Warsaw Rafal Trzaszkowski claimed that reports he got from his city alone suggest a higher number.

Trzaszkowski, a prominent opposition politician, said during a TV interview that while the Health Ministry reported 8 dead in the Polish capital, “30 death certificates in Warsaw list the coronavirus as the cause of death,” he claimed.

The Health Ministry denied Trzaszkowski’s claim, saying that all data are based on reports issued directly from hospitals.

Piotr Muller, a government spokesman, later added that a significant number of death certificates issued in Warsaw are for patients whose residence is registered elsewhere in the country.

Source: Xinhua – PRAGUE, WARSAW