Anna Rzhevkina

Notes From Poland • 16th January 2023

Poland’s booming furniture industry hit by soaring wood prices and consumer belt tightening

Poland is one of the world’s top five exporters of furniture, but the industry – which accounts for 2% of national GDP and employs around 200,000 people – struggled in 2022 and is fearful over itsf future.

During the pandemic, Poland’s furnituremakers flourished, as people focused on home improvements during lockdown. However, that boom has now ended and the industry suffered a difficult 2022.

The global economic crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which fuelled growing inflation

Notes From Poland • 27th October 2022

“We have nowhere to go”: Russians in Poland - even opponents of Putin - struggle to renew residence

Olesya Sergeiko, an English-language teacher from Moscow, is half Russian and half Ukrainian. She moved to the Polish city of Gdańsk with her family in 2021 because of her opposition to the Kremlin’s policies. Back in Russia, Olesya attended protests against Vladimir Putin’s regime and unfair elections.

“I have always fought for fair elections. However, my experience has shown that to somehow influence the situation, we need many more people who care. It became clear to me that a change of powe

12th October 2022

Job market resists economic turmoil

Despite recent economic troubles and the cost of living crisis, Poland’s job market is still booming. Whether the current trend continues remains to be seen, however, as financial pressures are impacting new hires.

12th October 2022

POLISH IT SECTOR CONQUERS GLOBAL MARKETS

Once known as a cost-attractive location for basic IT services, Poland has outgrown the role of a basic service provider and today creates products that conquer the world’s markets.

FNArena • 4th October 2022

Weaker Oz House Prices To Reverberate In 2023

Australian housing prices are forecast to continue declining as rising interest rates have yet to impact in full, with consequences for the broader economy in 2023.

-Further falls expected for Australian housing prices

-Peak decline may not arrive until next year

-Weak housing market anticipated to reverberate across the broader economy

-Housing markets might not stabilise until interest rates no longer rise

The Australian housing market is set for the sharpest downturn in decades as rising

Notes From Poland • 22nd April 2022

Influx of Ukrainian refugees stokes housing shortage in Poland

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, almost 3 million people have fled across the border in Poland, and it is estimated that the majority remain in the country.

As many of them seek a place to stay temporarily or long term, the demand for apartments for rent has spiked in the large Polish cities that have been the refugees’ main destination. This has further pushed up already record-high rental prices, fuelled by inflation and high energy bills.

Kafkadesk - Ultra-local news from Central Europe • 20th March 2022

As Poland calls for help, Gdańsk volunteers work day and night to support Ukrainian refugees

Gdansk, Poland – People rushing and lining up in front of help centres, crowds at the main train station, and yellow-blue flags popping up everywhere: Polish cities like Gdańsk have opened their arms to Ukrainians escaping the war.

The solidarity and mobilisation of Polish volunteers have been instrumental in managing the first weeks of one of the worst refugee crises on the European continent in decades. But as more people cross the border, Poland struggles to accommodate everyone in need.

Kafkadesk - Ultra-local news from Central Europe • 7th March 2022

Blame-game continues as Poles face sky-high gas prices - Kafkadesk

Gdansk, Poland – Poland has long been seeking to diversify gas supplies as its long-term contract with Russian state giant Gazprom is scheduled to expire at the end of 2022.

But as the energy crisis in Europe deepens and the Russian-Ukrainian war rages just across its border, Poland faces galloping commodity prices directly impacting households and businesses still reeling from two years of the pandemic.

COVID-19 crisis: a shot in the arm for Russian e-commerce • 16th August 2021

COVID-19 crisis: a shot in the arm for Russian e-commerce

GDANSK/MOSCOW (Reuters) - The coronavirus crisis has helped fuel a surge in online shopping in Russia that has put even the remote icy expanse of Chukotka on the e-commerce map.

The windswept region in Russia’s far east, where winter temperatures can fall below minus 50 degrees Celsius (-58F), has started to boom for online retailers since the pandemic started keeping consumers at home.

It’s a trend playing out across Russia, spurring explosive growth for online retailers. Traditionally unable