Poland's public gap to fall to 3.5% of GDP in 2012: minister

(WARSAW) - Poland will cut its public finance deficit to 3.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year from 5.1 percent in 2011, Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski said on Wednesday.

"This year we expect to bring the public deficit back to 3.5 percent of GDP," Rostowski told reporters.

"This means that next year Poland will avoid the excessive deficit procedure" imposed on it by Brussels in 2009, as the deficit will be lower next year than this year, he added.

The Polish government on Tuesday revised down its GDP growth forecast for 2013 to 2.2 percent from a previously estimated 2.9 percent. This year, it expects GDP growth to reach 2.5 percent.

Poland's updated state budget draft for 2013 reckons with a budget deficit worth 35.6 billion zloty (8.5 billion euros, $10.7 billion) on revenue worth 299.1 billion zloty and spending of 334.7 billion zloty.

Up to now, the government expected a deficit worth 32 billion zloty.

The government has explained the higher budget deficit by "worse growth forecasts for 2013 across the EU, compared with those published in the spring."

Poland, a country of 38.2 million people, has managed to maintain growth ever since the global crisis first hit in 2008.

Its economy grew by 4.3 percent in 2011, following 3.8-percent growth in 2010.