Thursday, 15 January 2026
Business conditions across Poland showed signs of improvement in 2025, although overall sentiment among entrepreneurs remained mixed and cautious, according to a new regional business tendency report.
The report, which assesses economic conditions across all voivodships and key sectors, indicates that business confidence strengthened compared with 2024. Improvements were recorded in every analysed area of the economy, although the scale of change varied significantly between sectors and regions. The most consistent positive trends were observed in information and communication services, as well as accommodation and food services, where sentiment improved in most regions for much of the year.
Despite these gains, data for December 2025 show that pessimistic assessments continued to dominate in several parts of the economy. Construction, wholesale trade, retail trade and manufacturing were the sectors where negative views were most widespread at the end of the year. By contrast, service-oriented activities, particularly information and communication, were more likely to record positive assessments across a majority of regions.
Manufacturing saw a noticeable year-on-year improvement in confidence in many regions, although sentiment in most cases remained below a neutral level. Construction companies also reported better conditions than a year earlier in several voivodships, but the sector continued to face weak demand and pressure on financial performance. In trade, both wholesale and retail businesses noted modest improvements during the year, yet expectations for the coming months largely remained negative.
Transport and storage emerged as one of the stronger-performing sectors in 2025, with confidence improving in a majority of regions. Some areas maintained positive sentiment for most of the year, supported by better assessments of current business conditions, even as expectations for future demand remained restrained. Accommodation and food services recorded the most optimistic assessments overall, with several regions reporting consistently positive sentiment throughout the year.
The report highlights labour-related expenses as the most significant constraint on business activity across sectors and regions. High employment costs were particularly burdensome for construction firms and businesses operating in accommodation and food services. Companies also pointed to uncertainty surrounding the broader economic environment and the level of mandatory public charges as factors limiting activity, especially in trade and construction.
Decisions on employee pay were most often linked to the financial condition of companies. This factor played a central role in manufacturing, construction and wholesale trade across all regions. Maintaining the real value of wages was also cited as an important consideration, although less frequently than overall company performance.
Overall, the findings suggest that while business confidence in Poland improved in 2025, the recovery remained uneven. Persistent cost pressures and uncertainty continue to weigh on sentiment, indicating a cautious outlook for the months ahead across much of the economy.
Source: Statistics Poland
