Consumer prices jump 7.7% in Poland, faster than expected

By VANESSA GERA
Associated Press

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland says consumer prices have risen 7.7% over the past year, the highest inflation rate in 20 years and a larger jump than economists had predicted. The November number released Tuesday is evidence that inflation is accelerating even faster than had been expected in the largest central European economy in the European Union. The statistics office says annual inflation came in at 6.8% last month. The price increases are being driven by gasoline prices, which have skyrocketed 36.6% since last year and have been exacerbated by a weakening of Poland’s currency, the zloty. The weaker zloty means that imports become more expensive for Polish consumers.