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No. 008 / 21st October 2013 / www.poland-today.pl / magazine, conferences, portal, newsletter
MANUFACTURING & PROCESSING Germany's Bilfinger acquires Polish filter maker ELWO, wins new contracts page 2 BANKING & FINANCE Alior's share price plunges after regulator enforces stricter bookkeeping page 3 Polish bankers lobbying for easier access to mortgagebacked bonds page 4 ENERGY & RESOURCES Italian contractors break ground on waste-to-energy plant in Bydgoszcz page 5
Kellogg acquired Pringles in 2012, becoming the world's No. 2 savory snack maker. Photo: Pringles
Kellogg to produce Pringles in Poland
US Kellogg Company, owner of the Pringles brand, will launch production of savory snacks in Poland next year. Their factory in Kutno, 110km west of Warsaw, is to create 100 jobs. page 13
Danish Rockwool investing PLN 280m
Mineral wool giant Rockwool is embarking on a PLN 280m modernization of its Polish factories, aiming to boost quality, efficiency and environmental standards. page 2
Six out of Europe's ten most polluted cities are in Poland, says new EEA report page 6 PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION UBM gets permit for Wrocław office project page 7 CONSUMER GOODS & RETAIL Kraków's BIK joins ranks of small-town retail park developers page 9
tel. +48 881 650 600
SERVICES & BPO Finnish Kemira picks Alchemia for Gdańsk service delivery centre page 10 TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS Regulator greenlights Lotos and BP's aviation fuel joint venture page 11 FOOD & AGRICULTURE Sugar giant KSC to acquire Agros-Nova's processing plant in Włocławek page 14 IT & TELECOM French mobile app developer Playsoft moving to new offices in Gdańsk page 15 POLITICS & ECONOMY Consumer inflation tops 1% in September, corporate wages growing faster than expected page 17 KEY FIGURES Up-to-date macroeconomic figures, currency & stock market data and lots of other hard-to-find info pages 18-20
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 2
MANUFACTURING & PROCESSING
Danish insulation giant Rockwool to invest PLN 280m in Poland
The Cigacice site became part of the Rockwool group in 1993, when the Danes took over a local insulation manufacturer. With a staff of 730 it makes a range of mineral wool-based thermal insulation products. Overall, the two Polish Rockwool plants produce 400,000 tons of mineral wool per annum. Asked about the projected impact of the newly announced investment program on future staff numbers and output of the Polish factories, Andrzej Kielar replies:
Danish insulation giant Rockwool has announced a PLN 280m investment program for its Polish production units in Cigacice (100km southwest of Poznań) and Małkinia (70km northeast of Warsaw).
DATA BOX: INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT
"The investments will encompass a full-scale modernization of the key manufacturing lines at our Polish factories, introduction of cutting-edge mineral wool production technology as well as additional environmental improvements. We plan to complete the streamlining by 2015, regardless of other smaller projects that will be implemented at the same time," Rockwool Polska CEO Andrzej Kielar tells Poland Today. To-date, Rockwool has invested close to PLN 1bn in Poland. In October last year the company embarked on a PLN 100m expansion of the Cigacice unit, where a new production line for Rockfon acoustic ceiling panels was added. The project were to create some 100 jobs in addition to estimated 1,000 staff the Danes employ in Poland. A few weeks ago Rockwool broke ground on a new high bay warehouse at the site. Together with a new reception and offices for Rockwool's logistics department, the project is to cost PLN 12.5m and reach completion by the end of this year. Bacl in 2011 the Danish giant acquired a Polish external façade solutions company Fast in a move to boost its competences in this booming segment of the Polish building insulation market.
The Rockwool Group was founded in 1909, but in 1962 the owner families split the business in what is now Rockwool and the aeroconcrete maker H+H, both of which operate in Poland. Rockwool has been a brand since 1937 and from 1976 it is also the company name. With a head office in Hedehusene south of Copenhagen, Rockwool has in excess of 9,800 employees in more than 40 countries. In 2012 the Group generated sales of DKK 14.7bn. The company is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Nordic Exchange Copenhagen, but the founding Kähler family's Rockwool Foundation is the largest shareholder with 23% of the shares. Chairman of the supervisory board is former CEO Tom Kähler.
Rockwool employs more than 700 staff at the Photo: Rockwool Cigacice plant.
Poland's industrial output increased by 6.2% y/y and by 9.6% m/m in September, statistics office GUS said. Seasonally adjusted industrial output grew by 5.0% y/y and by 1.4% m/m. The figure was slightly lower than average projections as analysts surveyed by the Polish Press Agency had expected industrial production to increase by 7.0% y/y and by 10.5% m/m in September. Production in the construction sector fell by 4.8% y/y and increased by 9.4% m/m in September, GUS said.
Industrial output & producer prices "At the moment, our new investments are aimed primarily at quality improvements rather than a capacity boost. We seek to make our products more accessible and competitive, offering category-leading quality even in the lowest price bracket. As a result, we will be able to make the entire Rockwool range in Poland, from hard roof and ceiling panels to soft loft insulation products, as well as reduce our environmental footprint. As for the potential job creation, it is too early to tell, but we can definitely confirm that the investment itself will create huge opportunities for local contractors whose services we intend to procure."
Industry output, y/y change Producer Price Index, y/y change 12% 8% 4% 0% -4% -8% -12% Jan 12
Mar May 12 12
Jul 12
Sep Nov Jan 12 12 13
Source: GUS, the central statistical office
Mar May 13 13
Jul 13
Sep 13
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 3
Upgrading Polish power plants MANUFACTURING & PROCESSING
Germany's Bilfinger group acquires Polish filter maker ELWO, wins new contracts Bilfinger Power Systems, subsidiary of the German engineering & services company Bilfinger SE, has acquired Polish flue gas cleaning specialists ELWO, which designs, produces and installs of electrostatic precipitators and bag filters for conventional power plants. The transaction price has not been disclosed. Founded in 1924 in Pszczyna (Silesia), Fabryka Elektrofiltrów ELWO went bankrupt in 2008 and three years later it was acquired from the receiver by Polish entrepreneur Ryszard Szajter, who turned the business around before selling in on to Bilfinger Power Systems. As of September, its order book was worth some PLN 100m and the company employed 200 staff. "The know-how of ELWO's flue gas cleaning specialists and its unique machinery fit perfectly into our portfolio," said Gerd Lesser, CEO of Bilfinger Power Systems GmbH. "Hence, we are in a position to provide an even more comprehensive offer to our customers in the area of flue gas cleaning and to expand our local power plant services in Poland." "Together with Bilfinger Power Systems, we are well positioned to serve the Polish lignite power plants market. With the future utilization of the joint sales networks and a stronger involvement in larger projects we expect a dynamic organic growth of ELWO," commented the latter's Managing Director Dariusz Kowzan.
Members of the Bilfinger Berger Group have been awarded a number of lucrative retrofit contracts in Poland's power industry in recent years. In September, the Würzburg-based Babcock Noell GmbH and Bilfinger Infrastructure SA jointly won a EUR 120m contract for the retrofit of three flue gas desulfurization units. The latter will be designed for the lignite and biomass fuelled units 4, 5, and 6 of the Turów plant in Bogatynia and will be put in operation by the end of 2015. All major components are to be provided by Babcock Noell GmbH, with the Warsaw-based Bilfinger Infrastructure SA being responsible for the construction work for the foundations and buildings including their inner installations and the gypsum storage for the flue gas cleaning units. In the middle of July Babcock Borsig Steinmüller GmbH, a subsidiary of Bilfinger Power Systems GmbH, won a EUR 78m contract for the modernization of boiler 2 at the Bełchatów power plant. Boilers 3, 4 and 5 of Europe's largest lignite-fired power plant have already been modernized by Babcock Borsig Steinmüller GmbH. The modernization of boilers 7 to 12 is currently also being carried out in cooperation with further subsidiaries of the Bilfinger Power Systems Group. As in the previous units, the work on boiler 2 aims at extending their service life, boosting efficiency and performance as well as reducing emissions. The delivery date is January 2016. In both cases the client was Poland's top energy utility PGE which operates mainly lignite & hard coal-fired power plants stations, even though recently it has made some moves towards the development of natural gas-based and renewable energy sources as well as nuclear power. PGE is heavily investing in environmentally friendly equipment and in the modernization of its power stations.
With a workforce of 9,800 staff, the Bilfinger Power Systems is a subgroup of the engineering and services company Bilfinger SE. Numerous German and international companies operate under the Power Systems umbrella, which concentrates on the power generation sector. Headquartered in Mannheim, Bilfinger Berger is a multinational German company specialized in civil & industrial construction, engineering and related services. In the recent years it has participated in many key infrastructure development projects in Poland. With approximately 60,000 employees globally, the company turned over EUR 8.6bn last year.
BANKING & FINANCE
Alior's shares plunge after KNF enforces stricter bookkeeping One of Poland's top lenders, Alior Bank, saw its share price tumble more than 20% on Friday, 18th October, after the bank announced that due to adoption of new bookkeeping rules its Q3 results would be lower by some PLN 105m than previously expected. The bank bowed down to pressure from Polish financial markets regulator KNF, which asked banks to introduce more conservative bookkeeping on bancassurance products. "The core of the problem is optimistic bookkeeping," says Michał Kisiel, analyst with financial portal Bankier.pl. "The KNF told banks as early as March how to handle bancassurance products. According to the regulator, as long as there is a risk a client may pull out of a policy, revenues from such products should be booked in stages, and spread out over the entire contract period."
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Shares in other major banks, which had gained in value in the past weeks, likewise dropped slightly amid investor concerns that the bookkeeping issue might not be limited to Alior alone. According to experts, such one-time share price corrections are of little significance to the clients of the affected banks, but may temporarily shake up the sentiment among WSE investors. In the long run, the new and improved bookkeeping regulations should contribute to greater transparency and reduced risk in the banking sector. Alior Bank hit the Warsaw Stock Exchange in December last year in what was the largest ever IPO by a private company on the Warsaw bourse. Of the total PLN 2.1bn worth of receipts, some PLN 700m represented new equity, whereas the remainder was cashed in by Alior's main shareholder Carlo Tassara, whose lenders started pressurizing the company in late 2012 to reduce its huge debts. Carlo Tassara was established by Franco-Polish billionaire Romain Zalewski, who injected some EUR 450m into the Polish start-up. Founded shortly after the 2008 collapse of US investment bank Lehman Brothers, in less than four years Alior created Poland's third largest branch network and started generating profits. Under the management of Wojciech Sobieraj, one of the wunderkinds of Polish banking, Alior introduced a number of innovations targeting the young and "interconnected" (for instance mobile bank Alior Sync) as well elderly as conservative (by enabling clients to pay household bills commission-free). In 1H 2013 Alior's net earnings came to PLN 171.8m, up 29% y/y. Total operating income generated by the bank as at the end of June 2013 increased by 23.4% y/y to PLN 790.5m, and its cost/income ratio reached 51.7%, down by 10.7% from June 2012. The value of loans extended to customers by Alior Bank reached PLN 17.7bn as at the end of 1H 2013, and the deposit base reached PLN 19.1bn. This marks a 43.6% and
40.2% increase, respectively, as compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. The loan-todeposit ratio at 93% remains one of the lowest in the market. In January-June Alior's customer base grew by 253,000 reaching 1.7m in mid-2013.
BANKING & FINANCE
Polish bankers lobbying for easier access to mortgagemortgagebacked bonds A group of Polish bankers have drawn up a recommendation on abolishing barriers for mortgage banking development and intend to send it to the Finance Ministry and Justice Ministry, according to the daily Rzeczpospolita. The recommendation, which seeks to pave the way for the introduction of mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed bonds to the Polish market, was reportedly sent for consultation to all banks last week. The introduction of mortgage-covered bonds would allow banks to improve their long-term liquidity, thus meeting new standards set by the Basel Committee, Andrzej Reich of the financial market watchdog KNF said during the recent Retail Banking Congress. Commercial banks in Poland keep mortgages on their own books and have no easy legal means of securitizing the exposure. Although mortgage-backed securities have played a controversial role in the global financial crisis, the bankers as well as many experts, believe they could provide Polish banks with better access to long-term financing and lower borrowing costs, especially for the
banks that are heavily involved in mortgage lending. If mortgage-covered bonds financed only 20% of the mortgage portfolio, it would translate into issuance of PLN 50-60bn of such papers, significantly increasing sector stability and releasing capital, bankers say. Polish banks have limited access to long-term financing, which means that in the case of mortgage lending they are forced to finance long-term loans through short-term securities. Creating a market for bonds, including those backed by assets, could remedy the situation to some degree. According to earlier reports, the regulator would like to see these instruments traded on the Warsaw bourse's bond market Catalyst after issuers meet strict regulatory requirements promoting transparency, liquidity and proper guarantees. Back in 2011 the regulator said it was working on the legal framework necessary for such instruments to be introduced in Poland, but little has been done since. At the moment only two banks in Poland are licensed to fund their activities via mortgage-backed securities. One of them belongs to the German-owned BRE Bank, which conducts its business under the mBank and Multibank brands. BRE was one of the biggest Polish players offering mortgages denominated in foreign currency before the global financial crisis dragged down Poland's złoty currency and made refinancing of loan portfolios much more difficult. BRE had in large part relied for foreign currency on its German parent Commerzbank, which itself got into financial trouble due to poor investments and had to tap the German government for aid. In a recent statement BRE Bank said it would direct 30% of its retail mortgage sales through a mortgage subsidiary in an attempt to double sales as it funds retail mortgages with mortgagebacked bonds. So far, BRE Bank's mortgage unit (BRE Bank Hipoteczny) has been focused on commercial real estate. As of end June 2013, its mortgage covered bonds amounted to PLN 1.85bn and were secured by a cover pool of PLN 2.5bn of assets.
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 5
"We have strong conditions and sufficient experience to successfully implement a new financing tool," BRE Bank's VP and retail banking chief Cezary Kocik was quoted saying, citing PLN 80m in monthly sales in Q2 and an NPL ratio at 1.9%. At the end of last year, foreign currency home loans, mainly in Swiss francs, accounted for 55% of mortgage portfolio of Polish banks, which had a total value of PLN 319.5bn. Foreign currency mortgages now account for only 1% of new home loans, with only the affluent standing a chance of getting one. Various securitized bonds, like collaterized debt obligations and collaterized debt securities, gained ill fame in 2008-2009 as many blamed the complex and opaque papers for playing a pivotal role in the crisis that endangered the US and global banking sector and triggered a global recession.
Under an engineering, procurement and construction agreement (EPC) signed last year, Astaldi and Termomeccanica are to design and build a waste-toenergy facility consisting of two incineration lines with a total throughput of 180,000 tons of municipal solid waste per year, with an installed power generation capacity of 13 MW, corresponding to an annual electricity production of 100,000 MWh, meeting the needs of 50.000 families. In addition, during winter time, 30 thermal MW will enter the local district heating network, keeping warm an estimated 3,000 families. As part of the project the contractors are to build a station for receiving the waste, as well as a composting facility.
Bydgoszcz is one of six major Polish cities that succeeded at taking development of waste incineration plants to the building permit stage and beyond. Perhaps the best known example is Poznań, which is implementing the project in a public private partnership formula. The Poznań contract was awarded to SITA Zielona Energia (an SPV of SITA Poland, subsidiary of France's SUEZ Environnement, and Marguerite Waste Poland, owned by the Marguerite Fund). The Białystok thermal plant will be developed under the design & build formula by the Spanishowned Polish construction giant Budimex and its consortium partners Belgium's Keppel Seghers and Spain's Cespa Compania Espanola de Servicios Publicos Auxiliares.
Farewell to landfills Planned throughput of thermal treatment plants in '000 tons Poznan Krakow
ENERGY & RESOURCES
Italian contractors Astaldi Group and Termomeccanica Ecologia have broken ground on a EUR 130m treatment plant that will transform solid waste from the Bydgoszcz and Toruń area into electricity and heat. According to schedule, the project is to be fully operational from 2016 with a workforce of some 60 full-time employees. The Bydgoszcz project is one of several high profile contracts Italy's Astaldi has won in Poland in recent years.
Szczecin Bialystok
250
225
200
175
150
125
100
75
50
Bydgoszcz's thermal treatment plant will be able to process up to 180,000 tons of waste per annum.
25
Konin 0
Italian contractors break ground on wastewaste-toto-energy plant in Bydgoszcz
Bydg/Torun
Photo: MKUO ProNatura
Source: Municipalities, PT archives
The investment was commissioned by Międzygminny Kompleks Unieszkodliwiania Odpadów ProNatura, a company established by the Bydgoszcz municipality to manage urban waste. The project is part of a broader EU-funded initiative that calls for development of waste-to-energy facilities in key Polish metropolitan areas. In Bydgoszcz's case, the EU contribution represents some 60% of the total capex, with a loan from the environmental protection fund NFOŚiGW representing a further 38%.
A couple of years ago Astaldi, which besides Italy, operates in the Americas, Midle East, Maghreb and Turkey, made Central Europe one of its target markets, with a particular focus on Poland. Their flagship projects in the country include the central section of Line 2 of the Warsaw underground (EUR 800m), the Warsaw-Łodź railway line and the Łodź Fabryczna station (EUR 350m), the Piotrków-Trybunalski section of national road NR-8 (EUR 350m), as well as the Mińsk Mazowiecki bypass.
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 6
Earlier this year the company was awarded a EUR 72m contract for modernization and expansion of the John Paul II International Airport Kraków-Balice, which is to boost the latter's capacity to reach 8m passengers annually as well as a EUR 50m order for the construction of a railway link between Krakow Central Station and the airport.
port by the European Environment Agency (EEA). In 2011, six out of the top 10 most polluted cities in Europe were in Poland, with Kraków experiencing 150.5 days each year above the EU's target levels for air pollution. Other cities in the top ten are Nowy Sącz, Gliwice, Zabrze, Sosnowiec and Katowice – all situated in the industrial heartland of Silesia.
most harmful emissions. However, environmental awareness in the nation remains low and domestic coal and wood burning remains common in the cities, whereas most Polish vehicles would probably fail exhaust emissions tests in Western Europe.
Six plants to cost PLN 3bn
The study, published last week, found Poland ranked just below Bulgaria in concentrations of fine particulate matter, pollutants that form when emissions from power plants, industry and cars react in the air. Poland also had the highest levels of benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), a carcinogenic hydrocarbon that's found in coal tar and also comes from wood burning and car exhaust. BaP is a growing problem in Europe, "especially in areas where domestic coal and wood burning is, or becomes more common," according to the report.
Average number of days in 2011 when particulate concentrations ex-
Estimated cost of thermal treatment plants in PLNm (project value) Kraków Poznan Bydg/Torun Konin Bialystok
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Kielce
Source: Municipalities, PT archives
Specializing in large infrastructure projects, Astaldi has been listed on the Italian Stock Exchange since 2002. The company ended 2012 with an order backlog of over EUR 10bn, a turnover of EUR 2.5bn, EBITDA of over EUR 264m, and net profit of over EUR 74m.
ENERGY & RESOURCES
Six out of Europe's ten most polluted cities are in Poland, says EEA Poland, the host of this year's U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) talks, has the second-dirtiest air in Europe, according to a new re-
Despite pressure from the EU to cut down carbon emissions, Poland remains defiant as coal-fired power plants continue to generate some 90% of its electricity. Poland is Europe's leading producer of coal, whereas most of the remaining hydrocarbons, such as oil and gas, the country imports from Russia, which has repeatedly tampered with these energy supplies to "discipline" its Communist-era ally. Although Poland has made huge progress as far as development of renewable energy sources is concerned, it is bound to remain dependent on coal for decades. In fact, a growing number of state-backed investors are contemplating construction of new coal-fired power plants in Poland. Ironically, besides hosting this year’s UNFCCC talks, Warsaw is also the site of the World Coal Association’s International Coal & Climate Summit, which will be held alongside the UN talks. It should be noted, however, that Poland's energy industry has cleaned up its act to a large degree and advanced filtration systems have been installed at all key power plants, resulting in a significant reduction in the
Europe's most polluted cities ceeded the EU target* Pernik (BG) Plovdiv (BG) Kraków (PL) Pleven (BG) Dobrich (BG) Nowy Sącz (PL) Gliwice (PL) Zabrze (PL) Sosnowiec (PL) Katowice (PL) 100
120
140
160
180
*) EU targets state pollution limits should not be exceeded more than 35 days a year. Source: European Environmental Agency
But Poland’s not the only European country to struggle with air pollution. Despite massive cuts in emissions of polluting chemicals, over 90% of European city dwellers are exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution, according to the report. The EU is in the process of reviewing its current air pollution policies, and EEA director Hans Bruyninckx said Europe must do more to reduce the levels of air pollution that are still high in Bulgaria, Poland and other European countries like Slovakia and the Czech Republic. "Large parts of the population do not live in a healthy environment, according to current standards," Bruyninckx said. "To get on to a sustainable path, Europe will have to be ambitious and go beyond current legislation."
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PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION
UBM gets permit for Wrocław office project Austrian developer UBM has obtained a building permit for its newest development in Poland, the Times II office project on Kazimeierz Wielkiego St. in Wrocław's Old Town. The LEED-certified investment will comprise two buildings offering total 18,000 sq.m of office space, 2,500 sq.m of retail space and 370 parking places in multi-storey partially public parking lot.
tion in May 2014 with 10,000 sq.m of class A offices and 175 parking spaces (including 149 underground). The project is situated on Pilotów St., in the vicinity of Młyńskie Roundabout, about 2 km from Kraków's main train and bus station and 4km from the city centre. The entire investment is worth more than PLN 100m and the general contractor is the Polish subsidiary of Austria's PORR.
UBM acquired the 0.53ha site from the municipality in October last year. The company has recently completed the mandatory archeological excavations, hoping to begin construction of Times II and the break of the year and complete the project some 20 months later. "We are expecting the delivery in Q3 2015," Peter Obernhuber, member of UBM's board, tells Poland Today. "It is not our intention to break the project up into stages. Even if this proves necessary due to the construction site's difficult logistics, the time span between the potential two stages should be marginal." According to Cushman & Wakefield the office vacancy rate in Wrocław increased by 4.4 percentage points in 1H 2013, reaching 12.4% (see box). "The market is difficult but we believe that the Times II project stands out due to its location and very high building standard. Therefore, we do not think that the relatively high vacancy rate in Wrocław will apply to this particular investment," says Mr. Obernhuber. The Austrians are also working on a 14-storey Alma Tower building in Kraków, which is to reach comple-
Times II will be sandwiched between existing buildImage: UBM ings in Wrocław's Old Town. The building's first and largest tenant will be the listed Polish retailer Alma Market, best known as the operator of the upscale Alma delicatessen and Krakowski Kredens regional specialty stores. Together with its sister companies Vistula Group and Krakchemia, Alma Market occupy 50% of the available floor space. The remaining offices are being commercialized by property consultancy Knight Frank. UBM's past projects in Kraków included Hotel Andel's, Hotel Radisson Blu, Hotel Park Inn and a residential investment Villa Galicja. Although besides Alma Tower the company is not working on any other projects in Kraków at the moment, they are gearing up for another office development there, UBM Kraków
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unit's head Bartosz Pająk told Poland Today earlier this year. In Warsaw, UBM has recently completed phase two of its giant Poleczki Business Park, bringing the project's GLA up to 100,000 sq.m. Developed in cooperation with CA IMMO and located near Warsaw's Chopin airport, Poleczki Business Park is yet to double in size. The company is currently preparing for the LEED Gold-certified phase three of that development.
DATA BOX: WROCŁAW OFFICE MARKET IN 1H 2013 • With In H1 2013, the transaction volume in Wrocław’s modern office market reached nearly 51,000 sq.m, with new leases accounting for 43% of which pre-lets account for over 50%. It represents nearly a threefold rise on the leasing volume recorded in the same period of 2012. The largest deals were the Getin Group’s lease of 11,700 sq.m in the Sky Tower office building and Kruk’s 7,500 sq.m lease expansion in Wrocławskie Centrum Biznesu. • At the end of June 2013, the city’s office stock stood at 510,000 sq.m, up by more than 40,000 sq.m compared with the beginning of the year, largely following the delivery of office space in the Sky Tower (28,000 sq.m) and phase II of Skanska’s Green Towers complex (10,800 sq.m). If all projects planned for 2013 are completed on time, this year’s supply will total around 80,000 sq.m. • The vacancy rate rose in Wrocław by nearly 4.4 percentage points to 12.4% from the rate of December 2012. Headline rents stood at EUR 13–16/sq.m/month, with effective rents at EUR 11–14/sq.m/month. Source: Cushman & Wakefield
PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION
office stock in Rzeszów barely exceeds 40,000 sq.m with rents at EUR 8.5-11 per sq/m/month.
Irish firm Boxelder to develop large office project in Rzeszów Irish-owned developer Boxelder seeks to build three office buildings with a combined GLA of 17,000 sq.m in Poland's southeastern city of Rzeszów. At a recent presentation to the Rzeszów town hall, the project should attract business process outsourcing operators to the city, resulting in the creation of up to 1,500 jobs. The Rzeszów-based Boxelder owns a handful of sites in the city, but its most ambitious project to-date, the PLN 80m complex of three buildings, will be located on a 7,000 sq.m plot of land at Kustronia St., near the district court building. However, according to local zoning plan, the whole area is designated for public administration, healthcare, and education facilities. The Irish investors are hoping the prospect of hundreds of new jobs to be created will convince the city councilors to alter the plan and enable commercial developments in this section of Rzeszów. The property consultancy Colliers has recently listed Rzeszów among Poland's 10 upcoming BPO/SSC locations. The other "rising stars" named by Colliers are Zielona Góra, Olsztyn, Białystok, Gliwice, Kielce, Toruń, Radom, and Lublin. As the competition between outsourcing BPO/SCC employers in key regional cities, such as Kraków, Wrocław, TriCity and Poznań, is affecting wage levels and draining the local talent pool, offshoring companies are looking to enter uncharted territories, and with its student population of 40,000 Rzeszów ranks pretty high among those new destinations. According to Colliers, the current
Boxelder may have a hard time convincing Rzeszów's city council to alter the local zoning plan. Image: Boxelder
Although foreign developers prefer to play it safe, investing primarily in the tried and tested locations, local companies in regional cities often end up being first to benefit from the outsourcing boom. Rzeszówbased DevelopRes is ready to build two office towers (16,000 & 25,000 sq.m) as part of a large SkyRes complex that includes also four apartment blocks. They will be Rzeszów's first class-A offices, and the developer is hoping its top quality project will attract international BPO operators to the city, which has recently lost a major project from Goodyear due to lack of suitable office space. The tire maker reportedly had sought to create some 1,000 in Rzeszów. According to DevelopRes, SkyRes will be able to accommodate some 2,500 staff.
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 9
PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION
WRF: Warsaw's modern office stock exceeds 4m sq.m in Q3 The total stock of modern office space in Warsaw reached 4.071m sq.m as of end of Q3 2013, according to the Warsaw Research Forum, which groups together top property consultancies operating in the Polish capital (CBRE, Colliers, Cushman & Wakefield, DTZ, Jones Lang LaSalle, Knight Frank and Savills), During the first three quarters of 2013, the Polish capital's office stock surged by 246,400 sq.m with 94,300 sq.m being added in Q3 2013 alone. Out of 15 office schemes completed since the beginning of the year, only two were located in the central part of Warsaw (Plac Bankowy: 3,700 sq.m and Chmielna 25: 4,300 sq.m). Most of the new office space (45%) was delivered in the Upper South zone (Mokotów). The largest schemes completed in Q1-Q3 2013 were Konstruktorska Business Center (48,300 sq.m), Miasteczko Orange (43,700 sq.m) and Marynarska 12 (40,000 sq.m). The relatively high supply of new projects contributed to an upswing of vacancy rate in Warsaw from 8.8% at the end of 2012 to 10.9% at the end of Q3 2013. Vacancy rate in the City Centre at 10.5% was lower than in non-central locations (11.1%). Gross take-up in Q1-Q3 2013 totaled 518,600 sq.m, which is 14% higher in comparison to the corresponding period of 2012. The largest volume of office leasing activity was registered in the Upper South zone (183,300 sq.m). Gross take-up in the City Centre amounted to 109,100 sq.m. According to WRF, lease extensions and renegotiations repre-
sented some 26% of total take-up were whereas preleases accounted for 37% of letting activity. The largest deals in Q3 2013 include the lease of over 22,000 sq.m by Polkomtel in the building located at Konstruktorska 4, the owner occupation of Wola Centre by Getin Group (18,900 sq.m) and the pre-let of BZ WBK (11 800 sq.m) in Skanska's Atrium One.
Dzierżoniów we offer attractive lease terms to our tenants and we are confident future sales turnover will confirm they made the right choice," said BIK's CEO Mirosław Koszany.
CONSUMER GOODS & RETAIL
Kraków's BIK joins ranks of smallsmall-town retail park developers Kraków-based developer Biuro Inwestycji Kapitałowych (BIK), which has so far specialized mainly in industrial properties, is embarking on its second retail project in the Silesian town of Dzierżoniów (50km south of Wrocław). Scheduled to open in Q3 2014, the Galeria Dzierżoniów strip mall will feature 25 retail & service units with a combined GLA of 5,000 sq.m as well as 105 parking spaces. Located in the centre of the city, right next to a Netto discount grocery, Galeria Dzierżoniów seeks to attract a diversified tenant mix, including a drugstore, electricals & sports goods outlets, fashion retailers, and restaurants, representing both domestic and international brands. The developer estimates the mall's immediate catchment area at some 75,000 inhabitants. "We analyzed Dzierżoniów in terms of population and purchasing power and we looked into the its directions of development. The site for Galeria Dzierżoniów was chosen due to its central location, near the railway and coach stations as well as the historic old town. As the first modern retail project in
Galeria Dzierżoniów will be the town's first modern shopping center.
Image: BIK
Dzierżoniów is home to a number of manufacturing plants that take advantage of investment incentives under the Wałbrzych special economic zone INVESTPARK, including chemical, textile, and machinery producers. With a population of 35,000, the town is a regional transit hub. Backed by Polish capital, BIK has been developing logistics properties since 2000 and its current portfolio includes some 85,000 sq.m of commercial space in Kraków, Ożarów Mazowiecki, Pruszcz Gdański, Sosnowiec, Chorzów, and Puławy. In 2010 the company decided to diversify into retail properties and medical facilities. Last year it opened a 2,700 sq.m strip mall Park Puławy, anchored by Biedronka, Media Expert PEPCO, and Drogeria Aster, and in 2011 completed a 3,500 sq.m elderly care unit in Chorzów. Besides Galeria Dzierżonów, its retail project pipeline includes also Retail Park Bielsko in Bielsko-Biała.
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 10
SERVICES & BPO
Polish hotel market to remain buoyant as investor attention attention zones in on CEE The volume of hotel investment activity in 2013 has surged within the EMEA region, increasing by 38% in 1H 2013 as compared to the same period in 2012. This increase is mostly led by major portfolio and single asset transactions occurring especially in Western Europe. However, with reducing acquisition opportunities in main Western European cities, investors are now showing renewed interest in the Central European key gateway cities, according to Cushman & Wakefield, the world’s largest privately held real estate advisor. Poland recently saw the sale of the 3-star, 288-room Mercure in Zakopane, and the Czech Republic of the 5-star, 124-room Palace hotel in Prague. According to Cushman & Wakefield estimates another two 5-star and two 4-star hotels in the Czech Republic, one 5-star hotel in Hungary and at least one 5-star hotel in Poland are expected to change owners in the next six months. "While Poland is now regarded as the key investment market within the region, we are also seeing interest from investors for prime hotel properties in Prague and Budapest," says Frédéric Le Fichoux, head of Cushman & Wakefield’s CEE Hospitality Team. Improved investor sentiment for the Central European region follows a continual growth in trading with RevPAR (revenue per available room) levels for the
first half of 2013 still up in Bratislava (10.7%), Budapest (8.4%) and Prague (2.4%) compared to the same period last year. Warsaw saw a surge in performance in 2012 due to the UEFA European Championship and is now undergoing a period of correction with RevPAR levels understandably lower than 2012. "As the domestic market fuels growth, trading is expected to recover in Warsaw in Q4 2013 and Q1 2014," says Sarka Chapman, Consultant Hospitality for the CEE region and Cushman & Wakefield. Limited development activity in the region has further contributed to the increase in performance of existing hotels. Investors are now focusing on purchasing income producing assets as they are typically sold below replacement costs. The limited availability of bank financing for development projects, higher costs and additional risk bearing is further pushing investors to focus on existing hotels rather than development projects.
ing of the 5-star Buddha Bar and 4-star Park Inn by Radisson, Budapest has seen no substantial hotel openings. Bratislava had no hotel opening in 2012 and the 4-star Linder hotel was the only hotel opening in 2013. "As the European economy recovers and interest in hotel investments increases, we expect greater transaction activity within the Central European region in 2014," says Frédéric Le Fichoux.
SERVICES & BPO
Finnish Kemira picks Alchemia for Gdańsk service delivery centre
Poland remains an exception to this trend as several new hotels continue to open including the Doubletree by Hilton in the Wawer district of Warsaw and the Renaissance Chopin airport hotel, both due to open by the end of 2013. The market is expected to remain buoyant in terms of new hotel developments as Warsaw, Łódź, Poznań and Wrocław offer several opportunities, especially in the economic and mid market segments.
Last month, when we first wrote about the Gdańsk outsourcing project by Finnish chemicals giant Kemira (see PT Business Review+ No. 002 page 9), company representatives were still tightlipped on the final location of their shared services centre. Things have been moving fast since, however, as in early October Kemira inked a 7-year lease for 2,600 sq.m of offices space in Gdańsk's Alchemia complex. The Finnish company, which seeks to create some 200 jobs in Gdańsk by the end of next year, will occupy two floors at one of Alchemia's two office towers.
Prague has seen a very limited number of hotel opening over the past three years and the only substantial hotel openings are in the budget and midscale segment with the recent opening of the B&B hotel in 2013 and the planned Motel One in summer 2014. Although several other hotel projects still exist within these cities, the lack of financing and a difficult political climate have resulted in a significant reduction of planned openings in the coming years. Since the open-
Kemira chose Alchemia following a nine-month selection process. According to Sławomir Gajewski, CEO of Torus, the developer behind Alchemia, by early 2014, when phase one of the office park is scheduled to reach completion, some 70% of available space will have been pre-leased. Alchemia's first two towers have a combined GLA of 21,651 sq.m, including 16,700 sq.m of offices as well as a 4,500 sq.m sports complex with a swimming pool, fitness centre, and a range of addi-
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 11
tional amenities. Overall, the complex, located at the intersection of Grunwaldzka Avenue and Kołobrzeska St., is to include seven buildings.
gets for 2016 are EUR 2.6 - 2.7bn in revenue with an EBITDA margin of 15%. Its global workforce totals 4,900 employees. Besides the Gdańsk center Kemira's Polish workforce totals some 130 employees including 70 at the Kemipol units in Police near Szczecin and Wrocław, 50 at the Kemira plant in Świecie as well as a small team in Ostrołęka. By relocating its back office operations to Gdańsk, the company hopes to save up some EUR 10m annually. The plan to establish a Business Service Center impacts up to 210 current positions in the EMEA region, of which up to 80 are in Finland, Kemira said.
"We are always looking for new opportunities to grow the Air BP business. Poland is the country with the fastest growing aviation fuel sales in Europe and we have found a strong, local partner in Lotos," Air BP Chief Executive David Gilmour said back in June, when the joint venture agreement was signed.
TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS
Kemira is to remain in Alchemia for at least 7 years.. Photo: Torus
"Alchemia not only fully satisfies our office needs, but also reflects Kemira's philosophy. We paid attention to such details as LEED certification and eco-friendly approach which also represent Kemira"s values," commented Arek Rochowczyk, Managing Director & Head Business Service Center EMEA. Over the past month employment at the Gdańsk centre, which provides bookkeeping, customer service, purchasing, HR & payroll, and IT services to Kemira operations in the EMEA region, has doubled and currently it includes 60 professionals. "Our year-end goal is 100 staff," Maja Paradecka, HR, Kemira Business Center EMEA, told Poland Today. Kemira is a global chemicals company serving customers in water-intensive industries, such as pulp & paper, oil & gas, mining and water treatment. Last year Kemira turned over EUR 2.2bn and their financial tar-
Regulator greenlights Lotos and BP's aviation fuel joint venture The European Commission has given its blessing for tighter cooperation between Air BP, the aviation fuel services division of BP, and Poland's number two refiner Grupa Lotos. Their new joint venture, LotosAir BP Polska, will be formed by Air BP buying 50% of Lotos Tank, the wholly owned aviation subsidiary of Grupa Lotos. Air BP and Lotos will be equal shareholders in the company, which will manage the supply, logistics and marketing of aviation fuel in Poland. Initially Lotos – Air BP Polska will operate at Gdańsk (GDN), Warsaw (WAW) and Kraków (KRK) airports. Both partners are committed to significantly growing the presence of the new joint venture in the aviation fuel market in Poland. Lotos-Air BP Polska will leverage Air BP's global customer relationships and technical operations experience, as well as Grupa Lotos' local expertise and supply capability.
Lotos Tank is changing name to Lotos-Air BP Polska, to emphasize its new ownership structure. Photo: Grupa Lotos
"Our key objectives for the near future will be to integrate with Air BP's sales and operations units, develop sales at Polish airports as well as to enter new airports, which will require investment in equipment, staff training and logistics," Artur Warsocki, CEO of Lotos Tank tells Poland Today. "Our cooperation with Air BP foresees also expansion to foreign airports, but it is too early to speak of any specifics at the moment." A few years ago Grupa Lotos teamed up with Norway's Statoil Fuel & Retail in the aviation fuel segment, but that cooperation ended in mid-2012, according to Mr. Warsocki. The 2013 has been an important year for Lotos Tank, as the company managed to undermine the monopoly of its key competitor PKN Orlen by launching aircraft refueling services at Warsaw Chopin Airport, and Kraków's John Paul II airport. The company, which operates also at the Gdańsk airport and supplies fuel to the airports in Wrocław and Rzeszów that handle the refueling themselves, seeks
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 12
to expand to Katowice (KAT) and Warsaw-Modlin (WMI) in the near future. In 2012, the Grupa Lotos S.A. refinery in Gdańsk produced over 500,000 tons of aviation fuel.
Top five chains control 51% of market Poland's leading petrol station operators, no of units
PKN Orlen
2009
2010
2011
2012
Q1'13
share
1,747
1,714
1,756
1,767
1,766
26.1%
Shell
379
381
375
376
*479
7.1%
BP
384
402
424
446
453
6.7%
Grupa Lotos
327
324
369
405
405
6.0%
Statoil
291
308
349
356
357
5.3%
Controlling approximately a third of Poland's fuel market, Grupa Lotos is the country's second largest company by revenue. The company operates in exploration, production and crude oil processing, as well as in distribution and sales of a wide range of petroleum products. Over the past year's the production capacity if its Gdańsk refinery has risen from 6 to 10.5m tons. In the first half of 2013 Grupa Lotos turned over PLN 13.3bn, 18% down y/y, and posted a net loss of PLN 273m, reflecting dropping margins and unfavorable economic conditions. Its retail network includes more than 400 petrol stations.
*) including 105 locations acquired from Neste
TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS
Source: POPIHN
Poland may receive EUR 4.5bn from EU under new transport corridor program
"Through the Lotos - Air BP Polska joint venture we are establishing a significant presence in Poland. We will now be able to provide our commercial airline customers with aviation fuel through our newly formed joint venture when they fly to Poland, and we will expand our general aviation network by enabling customers to use their Air BP Sterling card at all the joint venture’s new locations," said Alexander Junge, Performance Unit Leader Northern & Central Europe, Air BP. BP is the leading foreign fuel retailer in Poland with a network of more than 455 stations. The company has invested more than USD 1bn in Poland since 1991 and last year its Polish unit turned over PLN 13.5bn. BP entered the aviation fuel business in the mid-1920s and currently fuels more than 8,700 flights every day. Air BP is the aviation services division of BP and markets aviation fuels and specialist products around the world. Air BP has a network of operations at around 600 locations in over 45 countries and sells over seven billion gallons of fuel a year.
In what it dubbed "the most radical overhaul of EU infrastructure policy since its inception in the 1980s," the European Commission has published new maps showing the nine major corridors which will act as a backbone for transportation in Europe's single market and revolutionize East–West connections. Two of the core routes, the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor and the North Sea-Baltic Corridor go across Poland. In the 20142020 budget perspective, EUR 26bn has been earmarked for transport projects within these corridors, with EUR 11.3bn to be spent in the cohesion countries. According to EC sources, Poland may get some EUR 4.5bn from that pool for related infrastructure projects provided that the country applies for them in the next three years. If the projects are well prepared, financing may even be higher.
These corridors will be supported by an extensive network of routes which will connect, according to the European Commission's plan 94 main European ports, 38 key airports, 15,000 kilometers of railway lines upgraded to allow for high speed travel and 35 crossborder projects. "The aim is to ensure that progressively, and by 2050, the great majority of Europe's citizens and businesses will be no more than 30 minutes' travel time from this comprehensive network," the EC wrote. In the Polish case most of the funding will be put towards modernization of railway routes as well as certain cross-border road links.
Two of European Union's nine core network corriImage: EC dors pass through Poland.
"The new EU infrastructure policy will put in place a powerful European transport network across 28 Member States to promote growth and competitiveness. It will connect East with West and replace today’s transport patchwork with a network that is genuinely European", the commission said. The core network, which according to the Commission is to "transform East West connections, remove bottlenecks, upgrade infrastructure and streamline cross border transport operations for passengers and businesses throughout the EU" will be established by 2030. "It will improve connections between different modes
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 13
Following the offering, the latter's share in MLP Group will decrease below 57%, with new investors to acquire a 20.8% stake in the business. Subscription ended last week and are to be allocated to retail and institutional investors on October 22. At the moment, MLP Group owns more than 158ha of land in Poland, which according to the company will allow it to reach a target level of warehouse and production space of around 720,000 sq.m. Specializing in built-to-suit solutions, MLP earned PLN 57m last year on sales revenues of PLN 86m. Its asset portfolio was worth PLN 936m as of end of 2012, up from PLN 240m in 2006. In the first half of 2013, MLP Group signed new lease agreements covering a total of 48,000 sq.m of ware-
Leased space at MLP's Polish parks in sq.m 350 300
intersection in Mysłowice, is currently under construction with phase one (22,900 sq.m) to be delivered in Q1 2014. The company's fastest-growing project is MLP Pruszkow II, which has attracted a number of tenants in the past few months. Located in the outskirts of Warsaw, 5km from Pruszków, the park occupies a total of 67ha and will ultimately offer 302,000 sq.m of built up space. MLP said it would allocate some PLN 50m of proceeds from the equity boost to expansion of its existing parks (MLP Bieruń: PLN 15m; MLP Pruszków: PLN 25m; and MLP Poznań: PLN 10m) while a further PLN 23.5bn will be put towards acquisition of attractive investment sites for new projects.
250 200 150
FOOD & AGRICULTURE
100 50 *2013
2012
2011
2010
0 2009
Israeli-owned warehouse developer MLP Group, which has recently broken ground on its 5th Polish logistic park, is hoping to raise gross PLN 90.6m from a share issue on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, which will support the company's ambitious investment pipeline. The issue price has been set at PLN 24. In the placement, MLP Group is offering 3.77m shares including 3.02m new C-series shares and 0.75 existing A-shares belonging to the current shareholder Cajamarca Holland, Dutch-based subsidiary of the Tel-Avivlisted Israel Land Development Company Ltd.
2008
MLP Group boost equity to finance new warehouse projects
2007
TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS
house and manufacturing space, with MLP Pruszków II being the company's fastest-growing park, following the completion of the 165,000 sq.m MLP Pruszków I (plot size: 43ha). In Poznań, MLP is developing warehouses with a total area of approx. 102,000 sq.m (plot size: 19ha). Their MLP Tychy pro-ject in Silesia has been fully rented out. As of end of last year, nearly 300,000 sq.m of space at the company's Polish industrial parks was occupied and so far this year the figure has gone up by more than 50,000 sq.m.
2006
of transport and contribute to the EU's climate change objectives," it added.
*) end of 1H (all data as of end of period) Source: MLP Group
"Two of our five parks are almost fully leased out, but we can see enormous opportunities for further expansion in our other locations. At our Bieruń, Pruszków II and Poznań parks, approximately 400,000 sq.m of warehouse space may still be created. We plan to supplement our land bank with acquisitions of additional plots for the development of new logistics parks," MLP's board member Dorota Jagodzińska-Sasson told Poland Today last month, confirming the company's interest in the Wrocław and Upper Silesia regions. Their latest project, the 55,000 sq.m MLP Bieruń, located on a 11.5ha plot in the Katowice Special Economic Zone, near the S1 expressway and the A4 motorway
Kellogg's Kutno plant to launch production of savory snacks next year, year, create 100 jobs UMA Investments, subsidiary of US food giant Kellogg gears up to launch production of savory snacks in Kutno (110km west of Warsaw). The Kellogg Company became the world's number two savory snack producer last year with the USD 2.7bn acquisition of the Pringles snack business from FMCG giant P&G. Starting from next year, the Pringles snacks, which are now Kellog's 2nd largest brand after Special K, will be made also in Poland. "We are rolling out the production in the second half of 2014," Eugene Evans, who heads Kellogg's Polish operations, tells Poland Today. "We have already hired 50 people and we aim at doubling that number by next
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 14
summer. We are currently looking to hire highly skilled technicians in the Kutno region." UMA acquired the Kutno site in 2007 and completed a factory building of approximately 15,000 sq.m shortly after. The project had been sitting idle for nearly half a decade before Kellogg returned to Kutno in 2013 with new plans. In early 2013 the Łódz Special Economic Zone said UMA promised to invest a further PLN 225.8m (approx. EUR 54.8m) in the Kutno project that were to create a minimum of 40 new jobs. Company representatives explained the investment was for a 10,000 sq.m extension to the existing building which will contain a raw material area, process, packing and warehouse.
Stagnation in savory snacks Retail volume in '000 tons and retail value in EURm
2011 '000 tons
2012 EURm*
'000
EURm*
tons
Crisps/Chips
34.8
220.2
35.5
213.2
Puffed snacks
15.9
86.4
16.1
82.9
Nuts
10.8
47.6
11.0
46.1
1.1
4.2
1.1
4.1
24.7
70.3
25.0
67.4
0.4
3.7
0.4
3.7
Popcorn Pretzels & sticks Tortillas
Source: Euromonitor International
*) at current prices
"We need to stay flexible and keep a certain capacity to adapt to business demand. We have decided to invest in savory snacks development, an area which offers a growth opportunity for our business," Mr. Evans explains. "We are committed to make Kutno one of our top performing plants and we are investing accordingly." Prior to 2008 sales of savory snacks in Poland used to grow at a double digit pace, but market saturation and economic slowdown have since caught up with the
segment. According to Euromonitor International, in 2011 and 2012 the market contracted and the research company expects little improvement in the coming years. For instance, sales of crisps/chips in Poland totaled EUR 213m in 2012 and in 2017 Eurominotor sees the figure at EUR 214m. Other analysts are slightly more optimistic. MarketLine expects the whole savory snacks category to reach EUR 497.1m and 117,500 tons in 2016, representing a growth by 27.6% in value terms and 15.2% in volume terms from 2011 levels. The segment is dominated by global producers with PepsiCo, Lorenz Bahlsen Snack World (LBS) and InterSnack controlling some 77% of all sales, with PepsiCo alone boasting a 44% market share. As for breakfast cereals, which is what Kellogg is perhaps best known for, the segment is being estimated at some PLN 830m (excluding cereal bars) and its value has grown almost ten times over the past decade. By 2016 the figure is said to pass the PLN 1bn mark. Once considered children's food, cereals and muesli have since become a popular breakfast choice also for nutrition conscious adults. The key player in the breakfast cereal segment, with a nearly 50% share, is the Nestlé-General Mills joint venture CPP Toruń Pacific with brands such as Nestlé Corn Flakes, Nesquik, Chocapic, Cini Minis, Cookie Crisp, Cheerios and Nestlé Fitness. The number two place belongs to Polish food giant Maspex Wadowice, whose brands Mlekołaki, Lubella Corn Flakes represent less than 10% of the market. Roughly quarter of all breakfast cereals in Poland are being sold under private labels of retail chains. Tough competition has already once driven Kellogg's out of Poland where their cereals are currently not available. Asked whether the company has plans to once again try its luck on Central Europe's largest market, Eugene Evans replies: "The Polish market is a very attractive one and we are indeed looking into opportunities to increase our presence here."
FOOD & AGRICULTURE
Sugar giant KSC to acquire AgrosAgros-Nova's Nova's Włocławek factory One of Poland's leading producers of juice and vegetable-based meals, Agros-Nova will sell its processing plant in Włocławek (140km north west of Warsaw) to Poland's leading sugar producer, the state-owned Krajowa Spółka Cukrowa (KSC) by the end of the year. The latter's newly created subsidiary Polskie Przetwory (Polish Preserves) has been renting the plant since 1st October and all of Włocławek's 119 staff have transferred to the new employer. This is very good news for the employees, who were told by AgrosNova back in May that the plant would be shut down and its employees made redundant before the end of August. "The final staff numbers in Włocławek are likely to be higher once our investment program gets underway," Bogusław Mazur, spokesman at KSC, tells Poland Today. "Initially the unit will focus on semi-finished products, for instance tomato concentrate, for B2B clients, as well as contract manufacturing & private label production in the B2C channel. Besides ketchup and tomato concentrate the factory makes other types of vegetable preserves and it is strategically located very close to key vegetable production areas. Roughly a quarter of Poland's tomato, cucumber, and carrots are located in this region, which also has an impact on the plant's potential. We are working on our own brand for ketchup and other products and we can see huge prospects for Polskie Przetwory in health & convenience foods as well the private label segment."
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 15
As for Agros-Nova, the company will concentrate all vegetable processing operations in Łowicz, south of Warsaw. Following the divestment of its Włocławek unit, Agros-Nova will have three production plants in Poland, specializing in juices and beverages, fruit & vegetable preserves, ready-made meals and condiments. The company employs approximately 1,880 staff across the three locations and owns some of Poland's most popular grocery brands, including Łowicz, Fortuna, Garden, Tarczyn, Krakus, Kotlin, Pysio Dr Witt, and Włocławek. The latter is to remain with Agros-Nova despite the planned sale of the plant itself.
Sweet business Krajowa Spółka Cukrowa, key figures*
2010/11
2011/12
Sales, PLNbn
2008/09 1.65
1.52
1.78
2.33
Net result, PLNm
275
188
283
561
Source: KSC
2009/10
*) KSC's financial year begins in October
"We are glad we were able to find a solution that is favorable for the Włocławek employees. In the past years we had sold two factories, in Białystok and Kotlin, to new investors, who in both cases developed the business. I am certain KSC will be a good and solid employer as well as our supplier, giving us access to quality produce from the Kujawsko-Pomorskie region," Agros Nova's CEO Marek Sypek commented.
sugar mill in Moldova), the company seeks to grow its presence in the grain processing and food sector. "We are preparing for the planned lifting of sugar quotas in 2017, aiming to minimize the negative impact of market liberalization on our business. Diversification is key to this strategy, and since the beginning of the year we have made some crucial strides with the acquisition of grain processing company Młyny Stoisław as well as the Agros-Nova factory in Włocławek. We see substantial prospects for further acquisitions, because Poland's food industry has not yet reached its full potential. Although we are interested mainly in the segments where KSC already operates – sugar, confectionery, fruit & vegetable processing, and cereals, we are looking for development opportunities in all areas of the food & agri business," says Bogusław Mazur.
KSC is key player on the Polish market Sugar production in 2010/2011, market shares by producer
KSC 39% Pfeifer & Langen 26%
Nordzucker 9%
Suedzucker 25%
Sugar giant seeks to diversify
As for KSC, which boasts a 39% share in Poland's sugar production, the company has long been looking for ways to diversify its operations. With seven mills processing 4m tons of beet per annum, KSC is Europe's 7th largest sugar producer. In the financial year 2011/2012 it cashed in PLN 2.33bn in sales revenues, up from PLN 1.78bn in the preceding year, while its net earnings totaled PLN 561m, against PLN 283 a year earlier. Besides expansion abroad (KSC acquired a
business since. According to the original plan, KSC shares were to be acquired by its suppliers – a group of approximately 17-18,000 sugar beet growers. However, the latter reportedly signed up for merely 60% of the stock on offer, lacking the necessary financial muscle. As subscription got underway, it became clear that the most active farmers-investors were operating on behalf of a money-laden third party. That shadow backer was Poland's top food industry group Maspex, which provided "loans" to a group of farmers and KSC employees, who were eligible for buying shares in the business. This irked the other potential share buyers, who feared they would lose in competition with financially stronger competitors and receive smaller stakes in the sugar producer. In the end the Ministry cancelled the sale, sacked KSC's boss for his unclear role in the entire story, and asked investigators to look into the way the privatization had been carried out.
Source: Suedzucker
At the beginning of October 2013 the Treasury Ministry said it was ready for talks with stakeholders about the potential third attempt to privatize the sugar giant. KSC were to go private last year, but the process was suspended and the government has not been able to come up with a satisfactory formula for exiting the
IT & TELECOM
French mobile app developer Playsoft moving to new offices in Gdańsk French mobile applications developer Playsoft has pre-leased 800 sq.m of class-A office space in Olivia Four, the fourth building of Olivia Business Centre (OBC), developed by Gdańsk-based company TPS. Playsoft is hoping to move into the new premises in May 2014, becoming the building's first tenant. "The main reason for the relocation is to offer the best possible working conditions to our employees. We have a strong team now, great clients and the optimum size to handle the biggest projects we could hope for at
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 16
the same time maintaining flexibility. We of course do not reject the possibility of further expansion, and in that matter, OBC is a great choice due to the huge development potential of complex they are creating," Pierre Olivier Monteil, Managing Director of Playsoft Polska, tells Poland Today.
Maciej Kotarski of TPS, the company responsible for the development and leasing of Olivia Business Centre.
Olivia Four will be delivered in March 2014 with a leasable area of 14,500 sq.m. The entire Olivia Business Center office park, which will comprise seven buildings with a total area of 120,000 sq.m, is being constructed at Grunwaldzka Avenue, Gdańsk main artery, close to the Gdańsk University campus.
• With a total supply of 430,250 sq.m, Tri-City is the fourth largest office market in Poland, behind Warsaw, Krakow and Wrocław. In H1, new completions added 52,700 sq.m to the region's office stock, including two buildings within the Olivia Business Centre: Olivia Tower (14,240 sq.m and Olivia Point (9,600 sq.m.), BPH Office Park A&B (9,150 sq m), the G-330 building (6,350 sq.m.), Oliva Business Park – Alfa (5,000 sq.m), and Port Gdynia office building (4,800 sq.m).
DATA BOX: TRI-CITY OFFICE MARKET IN 1H 2013
• At the moment, there is 71,200 sq.m of office space under construction in Tri-City, the majority of which – 54,200 sq.m – is being developed in Gdańsk. Almost 23,100 sq.m will be delivered to the market by the end of 2013. • Supply: In H1 2013, companies leased a total volume of 22,400 sq m of modern office space. New contracts, pre-let agreements and relocations (net demand) accounted for 71% of the leased space. • Vacancy rate: At the end of Q2, more than 56,000 sq m (13,1%) of Tri-City office space remained vacant. The vacancy rate is stable.
Olivia Business Center will include seven buildings with a combined GLA of 120,000 sq.m.
Image: TPS
"Our investment is a particularly interesting option for BPO clients. The central location and easy access to public transport, university campus and other office parks, will support their stable, long term development. Playsoft our second French tenant after IT outsourcing company SII which started with several dozen people and now employs 400 professionals," said
• Rents: At the end of Q2 headline rents remained stable at the level of €12-14. However, effective rents are lower because of incentives offered by the landlords.
"The employee friendly location and economic efficiency of the property were of key importance to our client. The process of selecting a new office and negotiating the lease terms took a long time as eight properties had been taken into consideration. Finally, the
building under construction was chosen as this option was optimal and more flexible in terms of confirming the fit-out plan and the costs," said Mariusz Wiśniewski, Head of CBRE’s Tri-City Office, who supported Playsoft in their search for new offices.
Helping global giants go mobile
With a staff of 100 (of whom 80 are based in Gdańsk and the rest in France), Playsoft develops applications and games for mobile platforms, such as smartphones and tablets. The company has been operating in Poland since 2006 and its Gdańsk unit focuses mainly on creating mobile applications for brands and media (it has delivered the main app for the French daily Le Figaro as well as applications for payment card company Visa, among others) as well as developing and porting mobile games for the world's top names in digital entertainment (Electronic Arts, Square Enix, Disney, Namco, Sega, Ubisoft, and Zynga, to name just a few). Their portfolio includes mobile versions of titles such as Avengers, SimCity, Need for Speed, and Monopoly. Playsoft has also published the official mobile game celebrating the 100th edition of the Tour de France, and it is working on other original productions. "The scope and complexity of our projects are expanding very rapidly and this is the main reason we do not target specific growth but rather keep increasing our competencies and quality to continue being regarded as a premium partner," says Mr. Monteil. Asked about the IT market in Gdańsk, he replies: "The local market is very dynamic with many IT companies hiring great talents, and the relations between companies are generally good, at least based on my experience. There are some looming problems, however, on the recruitment front, as there simply aren't enough programmers to satisfy the demand from companies. This leads to strong competition between recruiters and offers that are not always rational."
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 17
POLITICS & ECONOMY
Inflation tops 1% in September, still below central bank's target
were affected by cuts in public kindergarten fees (by as much as 17.7% m/m according to GUS).
CPI inflation in Poland (y/y) 5% 4% 3%
Poland's CPI inflation amounted to 1.0% y/y in September, according to the country's statistics office GUS. The figure was slightly lower than in August (1.1%) and average projections (1.2%). In m/m terms the consumer price index came in at 0.1%, against expectations for 0.2%. "We now predict that at the end of this year CPI inflation will not reach 1.5%, i.e. the lower end target range (2.5% +/- 1%-point). Inflation target of 2.5% could only be reached towards the end of Q2 2014 while earlier we have seen it at the turn of Q1 and Q2 next year," Nordea Bank Polska's chief economist Piotr Bujak said in a market commentary. "There is still no evidence that the underlying inflationary pressures are being revived by the ongoing economic recovery. What is more, domestic demand still does not seem to gain strength quickly enough to start closing the negative output gap before 2015," he added, concluding that the Polish MPC is unlikely to start policy tightening before mid-2014, especially given the expected replacement of hawkish MPC member Zyta Gilowska (see Poland Today Business Review+ No. 007, page 3) by someone with more dovish profile. According to the Nordea analyst, in the past year the dynamics of Poland’s CPI inflation have been heavily dependent on administrative decisions, with reductions of natural gas prices and electricity tariffs, telecommunications fees, as well as a rise in garbage collection prices all having made a significant impact on the indicator. The September figures, for instance,
2% 1% 0% Mar 11
Sep 11
Mar 12
Sep 12
Mar 13
Sep 13
Source: GUS, the central statistical office
"This was the main driver of surprising drop in annual CPI inflation to 1.0% in September from 1.1% in JulyAugust. Changes of other consumer prices were broadly in line with expectations," said Piotr Bujak, who expects Polish policymakers to continue exerting pressure on consumer prices, pointing to recent efforts by the Energy Regulatory Office to keep costs of electricity for households flat in 2014 and enforce a reduction in natural gas prices for industry. In Mr. Bujak's opinion these actions might at least partially offset the planned hikes in indirect taxes, such as a higher excise tax on alcohol and tobacco.
POLITICS & ECONOMY
Corporate wages growing faster than expected The average monthly salary in Poland's corporate sector in Poland increased by 3.6% y/y and amounted to PLN 3,770.91 in September, statistics office GUS an-
nounced. In monthly terms Polish salaries grew by 0.3%. The official result has proven considerably higher than consensus forecasts that put the y/y and m/m figures at +3.1% and - 0.1%, respectively. According to BZ WBK analysts, the faster-thanexpected wage growth may bring about improvement in consumption and "also allows to expect some rebound in investment growth." Overall, they said, "the pace of growth of wages remains moderate (average for June-September period at ca. 2.6 percent y/y), but is higher than inflation. This means disposable income per household has been rising and this supports our forecast of strengthening of private consumption in H2." GUS also said that the combined workforce of Polish enterprises came to 5,495,100 people in September, which means that employment fell by 0.3% y/y and remained unchanged m/m. Analysts had expected the figure to drop by 0.3% y/y and inch up by 0.1% m/m. In related news, according to a recent report by consulting giant PwC, by 2030, the average salary in Poland will have increased by 172% compared to its 2011 level, bringing Poland much closer to the most developed economies. In 2011 Polish salaries were at an average level of USD 1,153 gross, in 2030 they are expected to be USD 3,137. At present, Polish wages amount to only 33% of the average earnings in Germany and in the US. Out of 21 countries featured in the PwC report, only India, China, the Philippines and Malaysia will record higher growth. PwC experts stressed that high salary growth will translate into labor-cost growth, which will negatively influence the competitiveness of the Polish economy. They added that while salaries are expected to grow by 6% annually, labor efficiency will grow by only 4% each year.
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 18
KEY STATISTICS Consumer Prices Prices
0.0
Alcohol, tobacco +3.7
+0.2 +3.6
+0.1 +3.6 +0.2 +3.7 +0.2
Clothing, shoes
-0.8
-2.7
Housing Transport
-4.7 +0.9
-5.0
0.0 +2.0
-4.8
-2.7
-4.7 +0.7
+1.2 +2.0
+0.1
+1.8
+0.1
-3.5
+0.4
-1.2
+1.1
-1.4 +0.5
-1.4 +0.8
Communications -9.7
0.0
-9.7
0.0
-9.7
0.0
-9.7
Gross CPI
0.0
+1.1 +0.3
+1.1
-0.3
+0.2
y/y
m/m
Apr '13
0.0
+1.0 +0.1
May '13
Jun '13
Jul '13 Aug '13
m/m (%)
-2.7
+1.6
+1.5
+3.8
-0.7
y/y (%)
-0.2
+0.5
+1.8
+4.3
+3.4
Year
2008
2009
2010
2011
Turnover in PLNbn
564.7
582.8
593.0
646.1
n/a
+13.3
+4.3
+5.5
+11.6
+5.6
y/y (%) Sep 13
2.6
Jul 13
-1.2
May 13
2.5
Mar 13
-0.3
Jan 13
2.5
Nov 12
-0.3
Sep 12
+0.7
Month
5% 4% 3% 2% 1% 0% -1%
Jul 12
y/y m/m y/y m/m y/y m/m y/y m/m
Retail Turnover
May 12
Sep '13
Mar 12
Aug '13
Jan 12
Food & bev
Jul '13
Sep 11
Sector
Inflation
Jun '13
Nov 11
Data in (%)
Residential Construction Dwellings
2008 2009 2010
2011
2012 Jan-Sep y/y
230.1
178.8
174.9
184.1
165.1
142.9
158.1
(in '000 units)
Producer Prices Prices
Industrial Output Out put
2012
Permits
2013
(%)
104.8
-18.1
Commenced
174.7
162.2
141.8
97.9
-16.2
m/m (%)
-0.3
-0.7%
+0.1
+0.7
+0.2
-0.3
+0.2
m/m (%)
-0.2
-2.3
-0.7
+2.6
+1.5
-4.5
+9.6
U. construction
687.4 670.3 692.7 723.0
713.1
707.0
-3.9
y/y (%)
-0.7
-2.1%
-2.5
-1.3
-0.8
-1.1
-1.4
y/y (%)
-0.6
+2.7
-1.8
+2.8
+6.3
+2.2
+6.2
Completed
165.2 160.0 135.7
152.5
103.2
-1.5
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
Source: Central Statistical Office (GUS)
y/y (%)
+2.0
+2.0
+2.2
+3.4
+2.1
+7.6
+3.3
y/y (%)
+11.6
+10.7
+3.6
-3.5
+9.8
+7.7
+1.0
Gross Domestic Product
Month
Mar '13 Apr '13 May'13 Jun '13 Jul'13 Aug'13 Sep'13
m/m (%) y/y (%) Year y/y (%)
Mar '13 Apr '13 May'13 Jun '13 Jul'13 Aug'13 Sep'13 -0.2
-0.1
-0.2
-0.1
-0.1
-0.2
-0.1
-1.8
-1.9
-2.0
-2.0
-1.9
-1.9
-1.8
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
+3.2
+7.4
+4.8
+0.2
-0.1
+1.0
+0.2
A: avg monthly wages in PLN B: indexed avg wages, 100=2005
Coal mining
Month
Period
Mar '13 Apr '13 May '13 Jun '13 Jul '13 Aug '13 Sep '13
m/m (%)
+20.9
+7.9
+16.1
+19.1
+7.8
-0.8
+9.4
y/y (%)
-18.5
-23.1
-27.5
-18.3
-5.2
-11.1
-4.8
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
y/y (%)
+18.1
+15.5
+12.1
+5.1
+4.6
+11.8
-0.6
Source: The Central Statistical Office of Poland, GUS
Gross Wages W ages Sector
Mar '13 Apr '13 May '13 Jun '13 Jul '13 Aug '13 Sep '13
Construction Output
Construction Prices Price s Month
Month
Q3 2012
Q4 2012
Q1 2013
Q2 2013
A
A
A
A
5,920
B
135 8,427
B
192 6,060
B
B
138 6,290 143
442,231
-3.5%
+1.3%
393,792
-4.1%
2012
+1.9%
1,522,736
-3.5% -4.9% -5.1%
+1.6%
1,344,384
-3.9%
Co nsumer conf id ence (lef t axis) Economic sentiment (right axis)
20
120
Transportation
3,543
125
3,816
135 3,439
122 3,547 125
IT, telecoms
6,493
169 6,379
166 6,685
174 6,707 174
Financial sector 5,875
132 6,044
136 6,356
143
Key Economic Data & Projections
100
Indicator GDP change
+3.9% +4.5%
Consumer inflation
+2.6% +4.3%
Producer inflation
+2.1% +7.6%
CA balance, % of GDP
-5.1%
-4.9%
Nominal gross wage
+3.9%
Unemployment**
12.4% 3.99
Sep 13
60 Jun 13
-40 M ar 13
146
Dec 1 2
152 3,693 157
143 3,432
S ep 12
163 3,556
142 3,365
J un 1 2
158 3,829
3,322
M ar 1 2
3,709
Retail & repairs
Dec 1 1
Construction
S ep 11
80
J un 11
-20
Mar 11
152 3,560 155 188 5,828 177
Dec 10
3,491
Source: Central Statistical Office (GUS)
+0.7%
Q3 2012
2009
198 6,196
3,613 144
Q4 2012
Economic sentiment and consumer confidence indicators
154
149
-2.8%
1,416,585
151 3,522
3,741
-1.9%
377,815
1,462,734
176 6,535
154
395,507
+0.5%
+3.9%
3,463
147 3,878
+0.8%
Q1 2013
+4.5%
5,790
National average 3,690
Q2 2013
2010
Energy
151
Current account def. in % of GDP
2011
Manufacturing
6,712
GDP in PLN bn current prices
Sentiment Indicators
0
3,421 146
Growth y/y unadjusted
131.7
The economic sentiment (1990-2010 average = 100) is a composite made up of 5 sectoral confidence indicators, which are arithmetic means of seasonally adjusted balances of answers to a selection of questions closely related to the reference variable. Source: Eurostat
EUR/PLN
*2010
*2011
*2012
2013
2014
+1.2%
+2.7%
+3.7%
+1.1%
+2.0%
+3.4%
-1.3%
0.3%
-3.5%
-1.2%
-0.2%
+5.2%
+3.7%
+3.0%
+4.3%
12.5%
13.4%
13.7%
13.2%
4.12
4.19
4.20
4.06
+1.9%
Sources: NBP, BZ WBK, GUS *) actual figures **) year-end
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 19
56.00 ↓
100 SEK
47.61 ↑
100 NOK
51.50 ↑
10,000 JPY
311.72 ↓
10,000 HUF
400
USD EUR 350
300
16.23 ↓
100 CZK
141.94 ↓
Money Supply in PLN m Monetary base M1 - Currency outside banks M2 - Time deposits M3
WIG-20 stocks Price Change Change in alphabetical 18 Oct 11 Oct end of order '13 '13 '12
WIG Total index
Mar '13 Apr '13 May '13 Jun '13 Jul '13 Aug '13 5.6%
5.4%
PLN (up to 5 y )
6.2%
PLN (over 5 y)
6.0%
PLN (total)
6.0%
4.7%
4.6%
150,475 508,299 109,312 920,112 425,740 941,791
Jun '13
Jul '13
144,260
155,767
523,783 530,666 112,815
112,565
927,345
921,662
418,252 405,900 946,586
945,077
928,359 412,407 949,988
- Net foreign assets 176,278 160,267 159,749 154,035 Monetary base: Polish currency emitted by the central bank and money on accounts held with it. M1= currency outside banks + demand deposits M2= M1+ time deposits (inc in foreign currencies) M3= the broad measure of money supply Source: NBP
52,587. 587.24
111
Change 1 week
511.5
0%
+57%
358
-4%
+48%
48.8
+2%
+12%
WIG-20 blue chip index
8.23
+4%
-17%
↑ Handlowy
124.15
+5%
+26%
2,48 2,485 485.13
↓ JSW
5.7%
5.4%
5.1%
5.1%
5.7%
5.6%
5.3%
4.9%
4.9%
↓ Bogdanka
5.8%
5.6%
5.3%
5.0%
4.9%
→ BRE
EUR (up to 1m EUR) 2.3%
2.1%
2.3%
1.9%
2.3%
1.9%
↓ BZ WBK
EUR (over 1m EUR) 3.6%
2.9%
3.2%
2.9%
3.5%
3.5%
↑ Eurocash ↑ GTC
↑ Asseco Pol.
Warsaw Inter Bank Offered Rate (WIBOR) as of 18 Oct 2013 Overnight
1 week
1 month
3 months
6 months
2.58%%
2.55%
2.59%
2.67%
2.70%
Reference
Lombard
2.50%
153,867 114,083
+8% -18%
5.9%
Aug '13 531,124
0% -1%
5.0%
NBP deposit
4.00%
-8%
-26%
Change 1 week
50.7
-5%
-24%
Change end of '12
Rediscount
↓ KGHM
121.35
-1%
-36%
2.75%
→ Lotos
37.25
0%
-10%
WIG Total closing index
↑ Pekao
196
+2%
+17%
last three months
17.66
+1%
-3%
1.00%
↑ PGE
The financial sector's net lending in PLN bn,
↓ PGNiG
5.74
-4%
+10%
loan stock at the end of period
↓ PKN Orlen
44.7
-2%
-10%
May '13
Jun'13
Jul '13
Aug '13
→ PKO BP
38.9
0%
+5%
Loans to customers
887,960
900,999
896,635
901,863
↑ PZU
443
+2%
+1%
- to private companies
259,593
263,453
261,000
263,491
↑ Synthos
5.32
+5%
-2%
549,117
553,055
552,503
556,027
↑ Tauron
4.97
+1%
+5%
1,622,666 1,634,587
1,616,221
1,627,182
↓TP SA
8.64
-1%
-29%
- to households Total assets of banks
+11% ↑
68.55
Credit
Type of loan
+1% ↑
Change end of '12
↓ Kernel
Central Bank (NBP) Base Rates May '13
49
5.3%
Source: Central Bank NBP
0% → -4% ↓
53000 52000 51000 50000 49000 48000 47000 46000 45000 18 Oct 13
100 DKK
as of 18 October 2013
26 Sep 13
338.24 ↓
18 Oct 13
493.75 ↑
100 CHF
12 Aug 13
100 GBP
Warsaw Stock Exchange, rates in PLN
on loans to non-financial corporations PLN (up to 1 year)
5 Jun 13
417.69 ↓
25 Mar 13
100 EUR
Key indices
Term / currency
450
16 Jan 13
305.06 ↓
6 Nov 12
100 USD
Stock Exchange
Average weighted annual interest rates
4 Sep 13
as of 18 October 2013
Interest rates
12 Aug 13
100 USD/EUR against PLN
Central Bank average rates
19 Jul 13
Currency
Source: Warsaw Stock Exchange
T rade Poland's ten largest trading partners, ranked according to 2012
Poland exports and imports according to commodity groups, according to SITC classification EXPORTS in PLN bn Jan- Jul 2013
y/y (%)
share (%)
2012
IMPORTS in PLN bn share (%)
Jan- Jul 2013
y/y (%)
share (%)
2012
share (%)
EXPORTS in PLNbn JanNo Country Aug share 2013
*2012
Share No
IMPORTS in PLN bn JanCountry Aug share *2012 Share 2013
37,974
+9.9
10.5
61,694
10.3
26,750
+3.6
7.4
44,287
6.9
1 Germany
Beverages and tobacco
4,910
+5.9
1.4
7,967
1.3
2,271
-0.1
0.6
3,989
0.6
2 UK
26,788
6.5%
40,184 6.7%
2 Russia
52,447 12.6%
Crude materials except fuels
9,077
+5.1
2.5
14,024
2.4
12,302
-7.6
3.5
22,053
3.5
3 Czech Rep.
25,260
6.1%
37,475 6.3%
3 China
38,360
Fuels etc
17,106
+0.1
4.7
29,389
4.9
41,400
-14.3
11.4
85,280
13.4
4 France
34,862 5.8%
4 Italy
920
+62.1
0.3
1,342
0.2
1,492
-8.7
0.4
2,887
0.5
5 Russia
22,508
5.4%
32,290 5.4%
5 France
Chemical products
33,929
+6.5
9.4
54,295
9.1
53,686
+0.3
14.8
89,140
14.0
6 Italy
17,805
4.3% 29,067 4.9%
Manufactured goods by material
74,733
-0.5
20.7
126,161
21.1
63,760
-6.0
17.5
110,773
17.4
7 Netherlands
16,321 4.0%
Machinery, transport equip.
136,236
+3.3
37.7
223,646
37.5
120,298
-0.5
33.1
203,718
31.9
8 Ukraine
11,709
Other manufactured articles
45,323
+3.8
12.6
75,925
12.7
31,609
-8.6
8.7
57,646
9.0
9 Sweden
11,339
2.7%
901
n/a
0.2
2,653
0.5
10,201
n/a
2.6
18,515
2.8
10 Slovakia
10,673
2.6%
361,109
+3.4
100
597,096
100
363,769
-4.3
100
638,288
100
Food and live animals
Animal and vegetable oils
Not classified TOTAL
103,223 25.0% 150,046 25.1%
23,321 5.68%
2.8%
1 Germany
88,967 21.3% 134,933 21.1%
21,213
91,033 14.3%
9.2% 57,235 9.0% 5.1% 32,782
5.1%
16,034
3.8% 25,303 4.0%
6 Netherlands
15,726
3.8% 24,543 3.8%
7 Czech Rep.
15,426
3.7% 23,327
3.7%
17,213 2.9%
8 USA
11,909
2.9%
16,436
2.6%
15,811 2.6%
9 UK
11,030
2.6%
15,509 2.4%
n/a
n/a
26,678 4.5%
15,288 2.6% 10 South Korea
Source: Central Statistical Office (GUS)
*) preliminary estimates, full year
14,619
2.3%
weekly newsletter # 008 / 21st October 2013 / page 20
Industrial Industrial Properties
Regional Data Industrial output Jan-Aug 2013 *
Poland's regions (main cities indicated
Indus-
in brackets)
Monthly wages (PLN) Jan-Aug 2013 **
Unemployment Aug 2013
Constru- Indus- Constru-in '000
try
ction
try
ction
%
New dwellings Jan-Aug 2013
Existing stock, sq.m
by region, 1H 2013
Num- Index *
Warsaw central
ber
Warsaw suburbs
VaEffective Under const cancy rents EUR/ ruction, sq.m ratio sq.m/mth
2,728,000
41,000
15.9%
3.5–5.0 1.9–3.2
Dolnośląskie (Wrocław)
98.2
87.5
4,169
3,907
149.7
12.9 10,403
115.2
Central Poland
1,021,000
8,000
16.5%
1.9–3.1
Kujawsko-Pomorskie (Bydgoszcz)
101.3
94.7
3,314
3,239
142.7
17.3
111.6
Poznań
1,041,000
50,000
3.6%
2.3–2.9
Lubelskie (Lublin)
99.5
96.0
3,628
2,999
127.4
13.7
4,021
89.1
Upper Silesia
1,478,000
33,000
5.8%
2.5–3.1
Lubuskie (Zielona Góra)
94.3
85.4
3,351
2,974
58.3
15.2
2,020
99.0
Wrocław
795,000
84,000
5.5%
2.4–3.0
103.7
87.5
3,604
3,000
148.8
13.7
4,150
94.9
Gdańsk
192,000
n/a
9.6%
3.2–4.0
97.6
90.8
3,740
3,295
158.5
11.3
10,314
110.3
Kraków
149,000
n/a
7.6%
4.0-4.1
107.0
81.1
4,482
4,761
282.0
11.1
17,638
91.6
Łódzkie (Łódź) Małopolskie (Kraków) Mazowieckie (Warszawa)
4,138
Commercial Properties
96.0
97.3
3,469
3,128
49.2
13.5
1,093 109.6
Podkarpackie (Rzeszów)
107.6
93.6
3,234
3,024
146.2
15.5
3,991 100.4
Podlaskie (Białystok)
105.4
88.7
3,175
3,754
68.3
14.5
2,230
80.8
Pomorskie (Gdańsk-Gdynia)
101.6
92.2
3,866
3,471
109.7
12.8
7,331
91.4
Śląskie (Katowice)
96.0
87.6
4,445
3,477
205.3
11.1
6,907
116.4
Warsaw
8,076
-5.9%
11.5-25.5
10.5%
85
Świętokrzyskie (Kielce)
98.9
87.2
3,339
3,163
85.5
15.6
1,597
87.9
Kraków
6,305
-12.1%
13-15
2.71%
41
78
Warmińsko-Mazurskie (Olsztyn)
98.1
85.1
3,163
3,055
107.1
20.2
2,697
88.3
Katowice
5,526
-5.0%
13-14
8.29%
48
56
102.7
88.4
3,638
3,584
142.5
9.5
8,905
98.2
Poznań
6,412
-13.3%
14-16
14.66%
44
55
110.1
84.7
3,398
3,230
102.1
16.6
3,667
76.5
Łódź
4,898
-9.2%
12-14
14.97%
31
26
100.8
86.7
3,873
3,658 2,083.2
13.0
91,102
98.3
Wrocław
6,031
-13.5%
13-16
12.37%
38
41
Tricity
6,453
-8.1%
13-15
11.24%
39
31
Opolskie (Opole)
Wielkopolskie (Poznań) Zachodniopomorskie (Szczecin) National average
New apartments* Q1 '13
City
PLN/sq.m
Index 100 = same period of the previous year. ** without social taxes Sources: Central Statistical Office GUS, NBP, C&W
Offices 1H'13
Retail rents**1H'13
Change Rents** Vacancy y/y
Retail
High
centres streets 85
*avg, offer-based ** EUR/sq.m/month; Retail units 100-150 sq.m
Poland Today Sp. z o. o. ul. Złota 61 lok. 100, 00–819 Warsaw, Poland tel/fax: +48 22 464 82 69 mobile: +48 694 922 898, +48 602 214 603 www.poland-today.pl Business Review+ Editor Lech Kaczanowski office: +48 22 412 41 69 mobile: +48 607 079 547 lech.kaczanowski@poland-today.pl
Foreign Direct Investment (EUR m) Quarter
Q1'12
Q2 '12
Q3 '12
Q4 '12
Q1 '13
Q2 '13
in Poland
-1,365
1,861
1,381
2,886
175
-2,883
310
-550
-1,203
957
2,719
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
in Poland
17,242
10,128
9,343
10,507
13,646
2,455
Polish DI
-4,020
-3,072
-3,335
5,484
-5,276
375
-5,313 -1,050 4,816
-139
1,194
1,032 1,274
1,652
-18,129 -17,977 -13,332 -3,368 -2,313 -5.1%
-4.9%
-3.5%
-3.5% -2.8%
362 -2.8%
stable
Standard & Poor's
A-
stable
Moody's
A2
stable
9
6 months- EUR 375 (PLN 1480) 3 months- EUR 245 (PLN 980) Sales Director James Anderson-Hanney
Real Earnings
2000
1800
6
Source: NBP, BZ WBK Source: Central Statistical Office GUS
Wage
180 160 140 120 100 Sep 09
May 10
Jan 11
Business Review+ Subscription 1 year- EUR 690 (PLN 2760)
mobile: +48 881 650 600
Average gross wage vs inflation.
Q2 13
CA balance vs GDP
2,334 4,048
12
Q4 12
CA balance
-8,893 -10,059
2012 Q4 '12 Q1 '13 Q2 '13
A-
Source: Rating agencies
Q2 12
Services, net
2011
outlook
2400
Q4 11
Trade balance
2010
15
2200
Current Account (EUR m) Period
number (left axis) % (right axis)
2600
rating
Fitch Ratings
% of population in working age
Q2 11
836 2007
Agency
Registered unemployed, in ‘000 and
Q4 10
Year
Unemployment
Q2 10
Polish DI
Country Credit Ratings
Sep 11
james.anderson-hanney@poland-
CPI
May 12
Index 100 = Jan 2005. Source: GUS
Jan 13
today.pl
Sep 13
Publisher Richard Stephens Financial Director Arkadiusz Jamski Creative Director Bartosz Stefaniak New Business Consultant Tomasz Andryszczyk