NEWS
Roma gather across ČR to protest extremism
Roma gathered in 13 Czech cities and towns as well as Toronto yesterday to protest rising extremist violence. Minister for Human Rights and Minorities Michael Kocáb attended the demonstration, and Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg joined protesters in Prague. A demonstration in Chomutov was cut short when protesters were attacked by a group of neo-Nazis.
most Czech press
Five Czechs, Slovak die in Austria avalanche
Five Czechs and a Slovak died in an avalanche Saturday afternoon on Austrian mountain Schalfkogel, near the Sölden ski resort. The victims were buried by snow at an altitude of about 3,000 metres, 500 metres from the summit. A mountain service official said they had not followed the normal trail.
most Czech press
Docs isolate seven on arrival from Mexico
Public health officers met 213 passengers and crew members arriving at Prague Airport from Cancún Sunday, sending one returning holidaymaker with a fever to hospital and ordering six others to stay in a home quarantine. No cases of swine flu have been discovered yet in the Czech Republic.
most Czech press
Talks on interim govt reset after stalemate
The Civic Democrats (ODS), Social Democrats (ČSSD) and Greens will present interim PM Jan Fischer with new proposals for the composition of a caretaker cabinet. Talks were stalemated on Thursday after ODS and ČSSD refused to support Fischer’s own nominations for the ministers for finance, industry and trade, and justice.
most Czech press
Poll: Klaus should represent Czech EU presidency
In a survey conducted by the Median agency for Lidové noviny, 53.4% of respondents said they would prefer President Václav Klaus to represent the Czech Republic in its EU presidency rather than interim Prime Minister Jan Fischer.
LN 2
Topolánek announces bid for re-election
Outgoing PM Mirek Topolánek told Právo he wants to win the general elections this autumn and become premier again. He said ODS’s pre-election campaign will aim at presenting it as the only competent party to run the country.
Právo 7 Sat
US blacklists ČR over copyright protection
The US government has listed the Czech Republic among countries that do not sufficiently protect US-made music, film and other copyrighted products against piracy. The European Parliament is slated to vote tomorrow on a telecommunications policy that includes provisions on internet piracy. Jana Reinišová, Czech deputy ambassador to the EU and the Czech EU presidency’s representative in talks on the package, said negotiators crafted a measure that respects both member states’ legal systems and citizens’ rights of access to information.
HN 15, ČTK
Central prescription registry crashes
The country’s central system for storing prescription data collapsed on Friday, the first day it was to be used for registering purchases of medication containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmacies were not able to sell such items based on the customer’s identification and only sold them to people with prescriptions. It is not yet clear when the system will be operating again.
most Czech press
Rath threatens health insurers over fee penalties
Central Bohemian Governor David Rath (ČSSD) said the Social Democrats would shut down 10 health insurance companies and merge them with leading national insurer VZP if party wins the October elections. Rath criticised insurers for penalising pharmacies in regional hospitals for not collecting CZK 30 prescription fees.
HN 2
Czechs criticise neighbours over work ban
Belgium, Denmark and Norway, a non-EU state, on Friday fully opened their labour markets to the eight post-communist countries that joined the European Union in 2004. The Czech EU presidency on Thursday criticised Germany and Austria for being the only two EU members to keep employment restrictions for the EU-8, terming the policy baseless.
ČTK
Prague passes trouble-free May Day
ČSSD celebrated May Day at Prague’s Žofín for the first time, eschewing the party’s traditional site, Křižík’s fountain, with more reminiscent of a garden party than a political demonstration. The Communists, joined by trade union representatives, gathered at Prague’s Výstaviště. ODS, led by Prague Mayor Pavel Bém, met at Petřín; party chief Mirek Topolánek was absent. Some 150 supporters of the Czechoslovak Anarchist Federation marched through Prague on Friday, guarded by police and eight members of the anti-conflict team.
Právo 3 Sat, LN 5 Sat
BUSINESS
Industrial output down 17.5% in March
Czech industry produced 17.5% less in March 2009 than it did a year earlier, according to preliminary figures from the Czech Statistical Office. In February production was down 23.4%.
LN 6 Sat
ČS managers are best paid Czech bankers
Top managers at Česká spořitelna earned an average of CZK 13.6 million each last year, the highest pay among top Czech banks. Executives made CZK 12 million on average at ČSOB and CZK 8.1 million at Komerční banka.
Týden.cz
ČSA pilots OK pay cut
The union of Czech Airlines (ČSA) pilots has agreed to take a pay cut of some 6%, effective from last month. The carrier hopes to save CZK 300 million by reducing salaries across the company.
ČTK
Prague transit back in black
Prague Public Transport netted almost CZK 51 million last year after losing CZK 1.8 billion in 2007. City hall subsidies made up more than a half of the firm’s CZK 14.23bn revenue.
ČTK
Česká spořitelna profit down 6.9% in Q1
Česká spořitelna in the first quarter made a pre-audit net profit of CZK 3.23 billion, down 6.9% year-on-year.
ČTK
Household borrowing loses some steam
Czech families owed CZK 906.3 billion in late March, some CZK 10 billion more than in February and about CZK 150 billion more than a year earlier, according to the Czech National Bank. Patria Finance’s David Marek says the growth of household debt is slowing as banks adopt stricter loan approval policies.
E15 6
Analogue TV switched off in Prague
Czech TV stations Nova, Prima and Czech Television on Thursday evening switched off analogue broadcasting from Prague’s TV tower in Žižkov.
ČTK
Czech build soc saving scheme world’s 2nd biggest
The number of Czechs saving with building societies is the second highest in the world at 5.4 million. German building societies have more than 30.5 million savings contracts. Austria ranks third with just over 5 million, followed by Slovakia, Croatia and Hungary.
ČTK
OKD will keep pay, cut external staff
Czech coal mining firm OKD has scrapped plans to cut wages but will reduce the share of mining outsourced to contractors, who supply about 3,000 of OKD’s 18,000 staff.
ČTK
Motorbike sales down 15%
Despite record-low prices, only 3,411 motorcycles were sold in the Czech Republic in the first quarter, a 15% drop year-on-year.
ČTK
