Sunshine before the storm

Almost everyone present had something to say about the coronavirus in the presentations and discussions, from the opening lecture to the closing panel [even though the first case of the illness in Poland was detected two days after the end of the conference – editor’s note]. “We are in a very similar situation to where we were in 2008,” declared Prof. Witold Orłowski, the chief economic advisor at PwC Polska, in his opening speech to the conference. “We have enjoyed a positive economic climate globally for several years, including on the real estate market. However, the size of the boom has varied from one country to another – there has been overheating in some cases, such as in the Czech Republic and Hungary. In other countries, like Poland, the price rises have been more modest. Such countries are in a better position – if you fly lower, the fall is less painful. Each cycle has to come to an end some day. A few issues have been building up i