ABSTRACT
This chapter identifies pre-crisis features of the Polish economy and society and some institutional arrangements that helped to create an immune environment in the face of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). It examines the role of foreign trade in sustaining Poland’s economic growth. The GFC, which originated in the United States, influenced the rest of world strongly: households, companies, regions, and countries were affected. Economic and social variabilities among countries and their economies’ reaction to the financial crisis has also been explained by cultural differences. Different studies, different methodological approaches, or different sample compositions have something relevant to say about the cross-country difference in output impact. When assessing the impact of the GFC on the economies, it is important to divide analysis of indirect channels of transmission into two specific groups: real channels, in particular the trade one, and financial channels.
