Twenty-five years ago, on New Years Day, Czechs experienced a shock transition from communist planning to a market economy. The post-communist government of prime minister Petr Pithart launched a price deregulation sending the price of goods up several fold overnight. Since then prices have increased on average 5 times but a faster growth in wages means that Czechs are enjoying a much higher living standard than before the fall of communism.
![](https://praguemonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/f-meyqwiaai6ru-3-300x300.jpg)