Bohemia Crystalex Trading may get bailout

Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek has not ruled out a bailout for the group Bohemia Crystalex Trading, which is in bankruptcy proceedings. The minister made the statement in response to an appeal for help from the glass manufacturer’s managers and trade unions who have sought to find a means of keeping the group afloat. Mr. Kalousek said that a financial injection from the state would have to be based on guarantees that the companies’ losses would not deepen and that renewed production would gradually start making a profit. Analysts have put the down-turn in the Czech glass-making business to a lack of inventiveness and new design, saying that thanks to its skilled glass masters the business still has a chance to recover.