Poland chemicals to lead eastern Europe out of doldrums

Poland and Hungary will lead central and east Europe's chemical industry out of recession, according to a new forecast by Oxford Economics (see below). Although chemicals output fell by around 10% in late 2008, steady recovery since then has led to a peak of 25% growth at the mid point of 2010 (see graph, page 3). 

Poland was not as badly hit by the financial crisis as its domestic banking sector adopted a slightly more conservative approach to lending than others in the region. 

The forecast suggests that emerging markets will account for over half of chemical output by 2016. How the world is changing.