Unemployment rate Actual (Feb): 13.0% Consensus: 13.0% Previous (Jan): 12.7% Negative seasonality lifted unemployment rate higher in February. However, there is obvious rising trend since 4Q/2008. The polish economy avoided recession, but the growth is still to slow to generate enough new job positions. The unemployment rate increased by 2.1 percentage points in last 12 months. Retail sales Actual (Feb): 0.1% y/y Consensus: 3.8% y/y Previous (Jan): 2.5% y/y Worsening labor market conditions affected domestic demand in Poland. Household expenditures helped to stabilize GDP during the Euro-zone recession. The latest retail sales figures suggest that this factor went out of steam. Sales in stores fell by 4.0% compared to the previous months and almost stagnated in the annual comparison. The detailed breakdown reveals that the most negative point is the decline in durable goods: sales of motor vehicles and parts (-12.8% y/y) and household goods (-15.7% y/y).