News

French spirits producer Pernod Ricard is looking to offload Karlovy Vary based producer Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka according to a report by the Reuters news agency citing well informed, but unnamed, sources. The French spirits producer, the second biggest in the world, has owned the Czech company since 2001. It has refused to comment. Jan Becher’s profits in the 2012-2013 were hit by the ongoing hangover from the 2012 methanol spirits scandal in the Czech Republic with a pre-tax profit of around 170 million. The sale price of the Czech spirits group is put at just under 4 billion crowns.

Czech pupils have come out well in a worldwide test of practical problem solving abilities. Czechs shared joint 16 and 17 places with Germany in the ranking of 44 countries from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development which were involved in the tests. The first seven places in the rankings went to 15 and 16 year old pupils from Asian countries with the best placed Europeans, the Finns and British, in 10th and 11th positions. Czech Minister of Education Marcel Chládek said the test results were proof that schools were giving pupils a practical foundation for later life.

Minister of Finance Andrej Babis has extended the list of state companies whose bank account surpluses could be used to help the state budget. Babis told journalists that Czech Post, oil pipeline company MERO, fuel distribution company ČEPRO, and the State Institute for Drug Control could all contribute to the state coffers. He has already said that almost 70 percent state controlled power company ČEZ could pay out its total profits for 2013 in dividends and that he is counting on around 4 billion crowns from the state forestry company. Former finance minister Miroslav Kalousek on Tuesday attacked Babiš for raiding the accounts of state firms saying that funds should be left with them to develop the firms.

Minister of Industry and Trade Jan Mládek has proposed that 1.1 billion crowns be earmarked to prolong the life of the Paskov coal mine for another two years until the end of 2016. Mining company OKD had threatened to close the mine at the end of the year with the loss of around 2,000 miners’ jobs. Mládek said that the proposal had been discussed with finance, social affairs, and environment ministers and would be put to the government some time in April for approval. He said that he had personally favoured the option where the government bought ownership of the mine for a symbolic one crown. The mine is an unemployment black spot with fears that the knock on effects of closure would have been even greater.