Business News | All stories

Labour Ministry expects real wages to rise 2.5 pct in 2004. IT minister hopes Telecom sale will boost Internet usage. Statistics Office releases revised GDP figures. Czech Republic competes with neighbours for Hyundai/KIA investment. Czech meat production up 8 % in September.

It's half a year before the European Union will take in ten new members, including the Czech Republic. Perhaps the most painful issue both before and after accession is the agricultural policy. EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, Franz Fischler, paid a visit to the Czech Republic a few days ago to discuss the issue.

Czech Republic records first trade surplus in 18 months. Government to change VAT rates again. UK's International Power bids for a Czech coal-mining company. Sharp increase in Czech imports of used cars. Aircraft manufacturer Aero Vodochody to lay off 10 percent of staff. Czech Republic sees drop in number of foreign visitors.

Parliament approves 2004 state budget in first reading. President signs law increasing excise tax. Government for a cautious euro adoption strategy. Brussels criticises Czech coalmines sell-off plan. Czech retail sales up 5.8 %. Producer prices deflation ends after 18 months. Foreign Ministry to help Czech companies do business in Iraq. Czech farmers want milk prices to rise to EU level. Daikin to build production plant in Pilsen.

Small and medium-size enterprises have often complained about difficulties obtaining credit from banks. This should change with the introduction of a new project called Company Rating, which was launched last Monday.

Czech unemployment rate reaches 10.1 percent. Czech industrial production shows massive growth. The government to sell two profitable coal companies. Express courier DHL to move information-related operations from Britain and Switzerland to the Czech Republic.

Czech consumer prices dropped sharply beyond market expectation in September. The Czech Statistics Office said prices in September were down 0.5 percent month-on-month, putting the year-on-year rate at 0.0 percent. Analysts had predicted that year-on-year inflation rate would reach +0.3 percent. I spoke to economic analyst Vladimir Pikora of the Prague branch of Volksbank about the main factors behind the latest development:

The British automotive company MG Rover has been seeking new potential trade partners in the Czech Republic to supply automotive parts to the UK. The suppliers should be globally competitive, because Central Europe is only one of many geographical areas where MG Rover has sent its envoys.

Czech National Bank Governor Zdenek Tuma urges government to proceed to the next stage of fiscal reforms. Czech business and consumer confidence worsens in September. Small coin withdrawal not expected to accelerate inflation. Dutch imaging company Oce considers moving printer assembly to Czech Republic.

A few days ago, the Czech National Property Fund introduced a new project to establish a legal framework for Public Private Partnership. In this week's Economics Report, we discuss this alternative method of government procurement with the chairman of the executive committee of the National Property Fund, Jan Juchelka.