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NEWS
Ministry may give ČEZ more power against debtors
The Industry and Trade Ministry is proposing a bill that would allow ČEZ to switch off the electricity to customers that owe it money. According to lawyers representing debtors, the bill would give ČEZ too much power to switch off anyone they consider a debtor. Tomáš Bartovský of the ministry said the law would help to prevent illegal power consumption, which amounts to hundreds of millions of crowns each year.
LN 1, 4
Discrimination against foreigners in healthcare
Ombudsman Otakar Motejl yesterday criticised the Czech health insurance system for excluding foreigners without permanent residency, including those married to Czech citizens. Motejl called the Czech regulations “retarded”.
ČTK
Lawyers, judges criticise High Court verdict on Čunek case
Czech legal experts have criticised a recent decision by the High Court to remove the Čunek case from judge Vojtěch Cepl and reassign it to another judge, saying Cepl should have had the opportunity to decide the case again. The Constitutional Court may issue a ruling on the verdict.
most Czech press
Medical fees hurting private pharmacies in regions
A majority of private pharmacies have seen profits fall 30-70% since January, according to an analysis by the Czech pharmaceutical chamber. The chamber said patients prefer to get their medicines in regional healthcare facilities where they don’t have to pay a CZK 30 fee.
most Czech press
Public television fined over ethics violations
The Council for Radio and TV Broadcasting has imposed fines totalling CZK 610,000 on Czech Television for covert advertising and for airing an unsuitable programme before 10pm.
ČTK
Child dentist caught sloshed at work
A Přerov children’s dentist was fired and spent the night at a detox centre after police, alerted by a patient’s mother, found 0.4% alcohol in her blood.
Právo 1, ČTK
Bursík: Klaus’s climate views hurting ČR
Environment Minister Martin Bursík says President Václav Klaus is hurting the image of the Czech Republic with his anti-environmental views. Bursík called Klaus’s recent speech at a climate conference in Santa Barbara as a combination of activism and amateurism.
ČTK
Fees boost health budget by CZK 10bn
The Health Ministry says patients last year paid CZK 5 billion in medical fees and health service saved another CZK 5 billion as the fees reduced demand for GP and emergency room visits and prescription drugs. The ministry says revenue from the fees and the cost cuts have been used to improve access to more expensive treatments of severe conditions.
ČTK
BIZ
New GDP figures even bleaker; recession seen
The Czech economy last year grew by 3.1%, less than the 3.5% estimated earlier, with the last quarter’s growth at a mere 0.7%, says the Czech Statistical Office. Most analysts expect a recession this year, with GDP shrinking by up to 2%. Patria Finance chief economist David Marek is expecting the economy to shrink by up to 3.5%.
most Czech press
Forbes: Kellner climbing the ladder of world’s richest
The richest Czech businessman, Petr Kellner, has risen from 91st to 76th place on the list of world’s wealthiest persons, according to the latest Forbes magazine report. Forbes said the PPF owner’s total assets amounted to USD 6 billion, up from USD 2.7 billion the year before. Bill Gates was identified as the richest person, with USD 40 billion in assets, ahead of last year’s winner Warren Buffett.
HN 17, 23, MfD A1, B6
Zentiva announces Prague delisting
Pharmaceuticals company Zentiva yesterday told shareholders it would withdraw from public trading on the Prague Stock Exchange.
HN 26, MfD B1, B5
ČEZ gets majority stake in Albanian power grid
The Czech power giant ČEZ and the Albanian government yesterday signed an agreement under which ČEZ will take a 76% stake in OSHH, Albania’s only electricity distributor.
HN 21, E15 8
Australian Gloria Jean’s Coffees enters Czech market
Australian coffeehouse chain Gloria Jean’s Coffees, the world number two, is planning to open a branch in ČR by autumn. The franchise will be run by Asko Nábytek, the second-biggest Czech furniture seller. HN reports Asko and Gloria Jean’s Coffees signed the agreement at the end of February and the café location is still under negotiation.
HN 19
Čekia: Nearly 9,000 firms based in tax havens
As many as 8,990 Czech companies, or around 3% of the total, are headquartered in tax havens around the world, according to the Czech Capital Information Agency (Čekia). The agency said the number of companies based in such havens rose 9% last year.
ČTK
Google to target ads based on users’ interests
Google launched a test version of a new advertising system yesterday for gathering information on websites that users visit and targeting ads based on their interests. Taťána Le Moigne, the head of Google in the ČR, said the system could be fully operational here by the second half of the year, depending on the results of tests abroad.
HN 22, E15 10
Charouz planning to build giant car hypermarket
Charouz is planning to build a giant Prague Sport & Car Centre to include Europe’s biggest auto hypermarket and a race track, the company announced at a real estate trade fair in Cannes. The first phase of the project would include a four-star hotel, wellness centre and casino and would cost some EUR 80 million. Charouz Group’s Zbyněk Malý, the director for investments and real estate, said the company would start building the complex “after the crisis is over”.
E15 1, 8
Moravia Energo affiliate enters electric trade
Bicorn, an affiliate of insolvent electricity reseller Moravia Energo, owned by Tomáš Chrenek, became a registered member of the energy market operator OTE two weeks ago, on the same day Moravia Energo’s operations were restricted. HN reports Bicorn could have a tough time obtaining loans and gaining credibility on the market.
HN 17
Nečas sees unemployment rising to 8-10%
Labour Minister Petr Nečas told Radio Impuls yesterday the Czech jobless rate would likely grow from last month’s 7.4% to 8-10% later this year.
ČTK
More guest workers flee ČR
The number of foreigners working legally in the Czech Republic dropped by more than 7,300 in February to 265,016, the second consecutive monthly decrease.
ČTK
ArcelorMittal must cut emissions in ČR
The regional government in Moravia-Silesia has ordered ArcelorMittal Ostrava, the top Czech steel producer, to significantly reduce air pollution in three stages by 2014.
ČTK
Official sees doubling of nuclear power generation
Tomáš Hüner, the deputy minister for industry and trade, told an energy conference yesterday the Czech government would like to double the share of nuclear energy in electricity generation by 2030 from the current one-third of total output.
ČTK
Vondra: Reviving lending key to fighting crunch
The Czech EU presidency’s priority in fighting the current economic downturn is to revitalise lending, Deputy PM Alexandr Vondra told MEPs yesterday. Vondra reiterated warnings against protectionism.
ČTK
Sazka posts CZK 8.1bn revenue for 2008
Revenue at the top Czech lottery and betting company Sazka last year grew by 5.3% year-on-year to an estimated CZK 8.1 billion.
ČTK
Spending on trips abroad up in 2008
Czechs last year spent a record CZK 77.5 billion on trips abroad, 5.2% more than in 2007, according to Czech National Bank figures.
ČTK
