Bright past and gloomy economic future?

“We are growing. But for how long?” wonders Gazeta Wyborcza after the release of economic figures for the second quarter of 2011. Poland’s GDP rose in that period by 4.3% following a 4.4% increase in the first three months of the year. “While Europe weakens, Poland still holds on,” notes the Warsaw daily, but most economists agree this rapid growth won’t be sustainable in the long run due to the slowdown in other eurozone countries, the threat of recession, lower demand in industry and shrinking exports. “Data released by GUS [Central Statistical Office] is very good indeed. But these figures refer to the past. The danger may soon come from abroad”, warns Witold Orłowski, an economist, referring to Germany's GDP poor performance in the last three months.