Czech PM says firms can cope with strength of crown

The Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek says Czech firms will be able to cope with the current strength of the crown. In an interview with Reuters, he said that the increase in the crown’s value helped offset high energy prices, and added that companies would be able to cope with a gradual rise in the Czech currency’s value. He said that despite entrepreneurs’ complaints, the trade balance was still ‘positive’ and that the Czech Republic was still able to export, even under worsened conditions.

The crown reached an all-time high of 25.93 to the euro earlier this week. The currency has gained 5.8% against the euro since the beginning of this year.