• 04/20/2018

    It should be mainly bright in the Czech Republic on Saturday, with temperatures of up to 25 degrees Celsius. Sunday’s weather should be similar before a change on Monday ushers in several days of rain.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 04/20/2018

    Petra Kvitová will take on Julia Görges in the opening match of the Czech Republic’s Fed Cup semi-final against Germany on Saturday. In the next rubber Karolína Plíšková will face Angelique Kerber.

    If the Czechs advance in Stuttgart they will play either France or the US in the Fed Cup final in October. The Czech Republic have won the competition five times in the last seven years.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 04/20/2018

    The Czech crown could reach 23.80 to the common European currency in three years’ time, according to a new study produced by the Czech Ministry of Finance. This year the Czech currency has been trading at an average of 25.10 to the euro.

    The regular study, based on prognoses by 16 financial institutions, also suggests that economic growth will slow in the coming years, from around 3.5 percent in 2018 to 2.5 percent in 2021.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 04/20/2018

    Hospitals are launching a survey for the first time of doctors and nursing sisters.

    The survey will give the doctors’ and nurses specialisations and training. So far, such a comprehensive nationwide picture of the health sector is lacking.

    One of the aims is to get a more precise picture of how doctors’ and nurses’ careers develop after training and to pinpoint where skills are in excess and where they are lacking.

    Many Czech regions and hospitals complain they lack key health staff while in other areas, such as Prague, the shortage is not felt so severely.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/20/2018

    The remains of Czech Cardinal Josef Beran will be flown back to the Czech Republic on Friday.

    The remains were removed from the St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on Thursday in a ceremony attended by Czech Minister of Culture Ilja Šmíd. The special military plane bringing the remains to Prague should arrive during Friday evening.

    Cardinal Beran found himself exiled in Rome in 1965 when the communist authorities did not allow his return to the country after a trip abroad. He died in 1969 with his last wish to be buried in his homeland. That wish was also denied by the communists.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/19/2018

    Czech prime minister Andrej Babiš has said he has no evidence that recent Czech elections were influenced by the activities of British-based company Cambridge Analytica. But he has promised that the country’s domestic intelligence service, BIS, will look into the matter.

    The claims Czech elections could have been influenced stem from British broadcaster Channel Four. The issue was raised in parliamentary questions in the Czech lower house Thursday by the TOP 09 lawmaker Markéta Pekarová Adamová.

    The main focus of the claims surrounding Cambridge Analytica is their use of profiles from millions of Facebook accounts in the 2016 US presidential elections.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/19/2018

    The lower house of the Czech parliament on Thursday supported a communist party proposal that a ban on exporting equipment for Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor be lifted. The vote was on the first reading as the start of the legislative process.

    The ban has been in force for 18 years with the communists seeking to overturn it since 2009. The precise proposal stems from the problems of South Bohemia company ZVVZ Milevsko which had won a contract to deliver air conditioning equipment.

    The Czech government took a neutral position on the issue when it came up in Cabinet in March in spite of warnings that agreement to lift the ban might affect relations with key allies such as the United States.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/19/2018

    Car production in the Czech Republic dropped by 2.6 percent in the first quarter of the year.

    The country’s bigger car maker, Škoda Auto, increased production by 2.5 percent, to stand at just over 377,000. The biggest drop came from Hyundai where output was down 15,5 percent. Production from the TPCA joint venture fell by 1.5 percent.

    The association representing the auto sector said it expects production to pick up over the remainder of the year. The auto sector represents around 9.0 percent of Czech Gross Domestic Product.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/19/2018

    Friday should be bright and sunny across the country. Top daytime temperatures will range between 22 and 26 degrees Celsius.

    Author: Chris Johnstone
  • 04/19/2018

    Slavia Prague seals cooperation with oldest Chinese football club In football, Czech top club Slavia Prague has moved to deepen its cooperation with the game in China.

    It has signed a strategic cooperation deal with the oldest Chinese club, Beijing Sinobo Guoan, which plays in the country’s top league. The cooperation covers top professional and youth football.

    Beijing Sinobo Guoan was founded in 1951 and was 9th in the league last year. Slavia is owned by Chinese company CEFC. A delegation from the Chinese club have been on a visit to Prague.

    Author: Chris Johnstone

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