Poland is set to be one of the least-affected economies by the current downturn, according to a new forecast by the OECD.

The organization predicts that the GDP in Poland will rise by 5.4 percent this year, followed by 3 percent in 2009.

The figure would put Poland second in Europe, only behind Slovakia. Inflation is expected to reach 4.2 percent on an annual basis in 2008, before dropping to 3.2 percent in 2009 and rising to 3.6 percent in 2010.

However, the OECD's rather upbeat forecast was overshadowed by a new projection by bank BNP Paribas, which expects the economy to inch up by a mere 0.4 percent next year.

After a similarly gloomy forecast by JP Morgan, some experts have begun to question the credibility of forecasts emanating from the banking sector.