NEWS
Party talks continue, ČSSD wants October vote
Leaders of the major Czech parties will resume talks today on rescheduling early elections. ČSSD head Jiří Paroubek has dropped his insistence on the balloting taking place in early October but joined his counterparts in seeking a quick constitutional amendment to allow for elections by the end of that month rather than in early November.
Source: most Czech press
Interim cabinet could name next Czech EU rep
Sweden, which holds the EU presidency, announced Friday that it wants the names of member states’ European Commission nominees by the end of October. If early elections are postponed, the Czech representative could be named by the caretaker government, which lacks a mandate. Social Democratic chairman Jiří Paroubek and Karel Schwarzenberg, head of TOP 09, said in a Czech Television debate yesterday that the country could lose its seat on commission if it keeps delaying ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.
Source: LN 2 Sat, ČTK
MfD: Alleged Russian spies eyed energy, not radar
Citing unnamed diplomats, economists and safety experts, Mladá fronta Dnes reports that the two Russians expelled from the country for alleged spying were interested in natural gas and nuclear power stations rather than the proposed stationing of a US radar base on Czech territory.
Source: MfD A1, A3
Winton Train arrives in London
The steam train commemorating the World War II-era journey of hundreds of Czech children to safety in Britain arrived at London’s Liverpool Street Station on Friday. Sir Nicholas Winton met with 27 survivors of the “kindertransports” he organised in 1939. News site iDnes.cz reported Chamber of Deputies chairman Miloslav Vlček, who attended the event, mispronounced Winton’s name as “Winston” several times during his speech.
Source: most Saturday press
Právo: Billionaire Nathanson to be US ambassador
Právo reports, without identifying sources, that billionaire cable-television pioneer Marc Nathanson will be named the new American ambassador to the Czech Republic. Nathanson formerly presided over the US Broadcasting Board of Governors, which oversaw Prague-based Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. If appointed by President Barack Obama and approved by the Senate, he could take office by the end of the year.
Source: Právo 1, 2 Sat
Koller quits national team after tie in Slovakia
The Czech football team’s chances to qualify for the World Cup took a hit with Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Slovakia in Bratislava. Disappointed with his performance, veteran striker Jan Koller, the country’s all-time top scorer in international play, announced his immediate retirement from the national squad. The next qualifier is Wednesday against San Marino.
Source: most Czech press
Poll: Most oppose election delay
Fifty-eight percent of respondents to a STEM survey said they disagreed with the Constitutional Court’s preliminary decision last week to suspend the 9-10 October early elections. Only 25% welcome the move.
Source: ČTK, Právo 2 Sat
Parties back eurozone entry, differ on dates
All the major political parties have pledged to support euro adoption, but only two have specified target dates. TOP 09 called for joining the eurozone in 2014, ČSSD in 2014 or 2015. KDU-ČSL said the country should adopt the common currency at the earliest possible time; ODS, the Greens and the Communists have not named dates.
Source: ČTK
V4 countries’ foreign missions might share HQ
Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza reported on Friday that the Visegrad Four countries – the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland – are considering sharing embassy facilities in some countries in central Asia, southern Africa and Latin America in order to cut costs.
Source: ČTK
ČR knocked out of volleyball champs
The Czech Republic was eliminated from the European Volleyball Championship in Istanbul at the weekend, losing to Italy on Saturday and to Bulgaria on Sunday.
Source: most Czech press
Czechs take ice-hockey mini-tourney
The Czech Republic took gold in the four-nation Euro Hockey Tour in Karlovy Vary, beating Finland 2-0 on Thursday, Sweden 5-2 on Saturday and Russia 3-2 on Sunday.
Source: most Czech press
Underage boy buys clunker, hits cyclist
A 50-year-old cyclist was rushed to hospital with a head injury on Friday in Frýdek-Místek after a collision with a car. The driver, a 14-year-old boy, told police he had bought his car four days earlier for CZK 2,000. He cannot be criminally prosecuted, but his parents will have to pay damages.
Source: ČTK
BUSINESS
Big airlines’ sales down nearly a quarter
Major air carriers’ revenue from ticket sales declined to CZK 583 million in August, a 23.9% year-on-year, according to International Air Transport Association figures. The drop is the biggest since 2005, Mladá fronta Dnes reports. The numbers do not include budget airlines.
Source: MfD A1, A6 Sat
Škoda plans layoffs as Germany drops scrapping bonus
Škoda Auto expects sales of its Fabia model to fall by up to 30% in the next two to three months as a result of Germany ending its car-scrapping bonus. Škoda board member Holger Kintscher said the top Czech carmaker might soon lay off as many as 2,000 agency-supplied workers and 500 of its own employees.
Source: HN 1, 21
HN: Debt collectors profit from crisis
According to a survey by Hospodářské noviny and jobs portal Prace.cz, the professions benefiting the most from the current economic crisis are debt collectors and experts on drawing EU funds. Auditors and IT specialists have suffered the most.
Source: HN 1, 26-27
Prague stocks rebound from August sell-off
Blue chips on the Prague Stock Exchange reversed sell-offs from the second half of August, with the PX index up 1.36% last week to 1,148.1 points. Erste recovered from the previous week’s losses, spiking 6.6% to CZK 731.
Source: ČTK
Producers fear higher tax on alcohol
Finance Minister Eduard Janota’s proposal to increase excise taxes would raise the price of a half-litre of beer by at least one crown, according to Jan Veselý, head of the Czech Beer and Malt Association. Richard Švéda of spirits producer Stock Plzeň said the move would reduce demand for hard liquor and drive customers to the black market.
Source: LN 5 Sat
TV Nova plans new production centre
Commercial television station Nova has launched preparations to create a giant production division that would sell films and TV programmes to other broadcasters as well as developing content for its parent company. E15 reports the division’s headquarters will likely be located in Prague.
Source: E15 1, 11
Janota: Household bonds issue might be delayed
Finance Minister Eduard Janota warned Friday that the government might have to postpone a planned issue of bonds for small investors until next year if the lower house fails to pass the required bill before early elections. The CZK 1,000 notes would have a fixed interest rate and individuals would be able to buy them online or at Czech Post offices.
Source: ČTK
CZK 3.3bn order to speed up trains in Přerov
A consortium of OHL ŽS, Eurovia CS and AŽD Praha has won a contract worth some CZK 3.3 billion to modernise an extensive railway junction in Přerov, part of the Prague-Ostrava speed corridor. The four-year project, representing the largest order placed this year by the Rail Infrastructure Administration, will increase the maximum speed on the route to 160 km/h.
Source: ČTK
Kobylí’s Vajbar wins top Czech wine contest
A 2008 Veltlínské zelené ledové víno (Grüner Veltliner ice wine) from the Vajbar winery in Kobylí, southeast Moravia, took top honours in last week’s Král vín (Wine King) competition. The contest, the largest of its kind in the country, drew 1,077 labels from 157 Czech winemakers.
Source: ČTK
