Latest news with #CzechRepublic
Reuters
29 minutes ago
- Business
- Reuters
CEE ECONOMY Czech economy accelerates in first quarter on higher household spending
PRAGUE, May 30 (Reuters) - Czech economic output jumped by a faster-than-predicted 0.8% in the first quarter, the highest since late 2021, driven by a strong rebound in household spending and inventories, the Czech Statistical Bureau (CSU) said on Friday. The result marked an increase from a flash estimate of 0.5% expansion, and put year-on-year growth at 2.2%. The central European economy has been slow to recover from the COVID pandemic, which was followed by an inflation wave, high energy prices and weak demand in main trade partner Germany. A gradual rebound in real wages, as inflation waned, has been the main driver of the recovery. The CSU said household demand contributed 1.5 percentage points to the year-on-year expansion, followed by inventory adding 1.3 points, government spending with 0.4, while foreign trade and capital investments had negative contributions. "The year-on-year result is the best in nearly three years and was caused mainly by growing household spending," said Petr Dufek, chief economist at Banka Creditas. "The first quarter result lays the ground quite well for the full-year growth of roughly 2%." Chief Economist Pavel Sobisek of UniCredit CZ+SK said momentum would help the economy going forward but there would be negative effects of U.S. tariff policies. "That will undoubtedly cause fluctuations of growth and its overall reduction versus a situation of tariffs not being imposed," he said in a note. The crown was trading flat versus the euro at 24.945 .
Associated Press
an hour ago
- General
- Associated Press
Czech Republic accuses China of ‘malicious cyber campaign' against its foreign ministry
PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech Republic has accused China of being 'responsible' for cyberattacks against a a communication network of its Foreign Ministry, officials said on Wednesday. The Foreign Ministry in Prague said the malicious activities started in 2022 and targeted the country's critical infrastructure, adding it believed the Advanced Persistent Threat 31, or APT31, hacking group, which is associated with the Chinese Ministry of State Security, was behind the campaign. It was not immediately clear what specific information were seized or what damage was caused by the attacks. The Czech ministry said a new communication system has already been put in place. Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said in a separate statement that his ministry summoned China's ambassador to Prague to make it clear to Beijing 'that such activities have serious impacts on mutual relations.' 'The government of the Czech Republic strongly condemns this malicious cyber campaign against its critical infrastructure,' the statement said. 'Such behavior undermines the credibility of the People's Republic of China and contradicts its public declarations.' The Chinese Embassy dismissed the Czech accusations as 'groundless.' It said China fights 'all forms of cyber attacks and does not support, promote or tolerate hacker attacks.' The United States denounced the Chinese activities and called on China to stop it immediately, the U.S. Embassy in Prague said in a statement. It said ATP31 previously targeted U.S. and foreign politicians, foreign policy experts and others. 'APT31 has also stolen trade secrets and intellectual property, and targeted entities in some of America's most vital critical infrastructure sectors, including the Defense Industrial Base, information technology, and energy sectors,' the embassy said. NATO and the European Union also condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the Czechs. 'We observe with increasing concern the growing pattern of malicious cyber activities stemming from the People's Republic of China,' NATO said. 'This attack is an unacceptable breach of international norms,' Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said. 'The EU will not tolerate hostile cyber actions.' In a separated cyberattack in 2017, the email account of then Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek and the accounts of dozens of ministry officials were successfully hacked. Officials said the attack was sophisticated, and experts believed it was done by a foreign state, which was not named then.
Motor 1
10 hours ago
- Automotive
- Motor 1
This Unknown Supercar Just Broke a Top Gear Lap Record
The Praga Bohema is a Czech-made supercar that debuted early last year. You may or may not have heard of it . Either way, deliveries began late last year, and now one example has lapped the Top Gear Test Track in the United Kingdom faster than any pure combustion car before it. The supercar uses a twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V-6 engine sourced from the Nissan GT-R and modified by Praga with bespoke turbos, a dry sump, and a titanium exhaust system. It makes 700 horsepower and 535 pound-feet of torque, pairing with a six-speed sequential gearbox. Photo by: Praga The car can hit 62 miles per hour in less than three seconds and reach a top speed of 197 miles per hour. All that power allowed the car to lap the track in 1 minute, 9.8 seconds. The Praga almost beat the Aston Martin Valkyrie's lap time of 1 minute, 9.7 seconds, and the Aston is a 1,140-horsepower hybrid. What the Bohema lacks in power, it compensates for in lightness and aerodynamics. The car weighs less than 2,300 pounds and can create up to 1,984 pounds of downforce at 155 miles per hour. Photo by: Praga Likely helping Praga get the best time out of the Bohema was the driver, Ben Collins , the former Stig from the Top Gear show, who's now a Praga test driver. He drove the car to the track on road tires and completed the lap without any modifications to the supercar. According to Praga, he simply donned his race suit, warmed up the tires, and attacked the track. Praga has already allowed customers to drive the Bohema, and it'll deliver three more cars to customers at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed , including the first US owner. Praga, a company founded in 1907, plans to build just 89 examples of the supercar. Check Out Other Top Gear Track Runs: The Fan Car Shatters Top Gear Track Record Ariel Atom 4R Laps the Top Gear Test Track Quicker Than the Old V-8 Get the best news, reviews, columns, and more delivered straight to your inbox, daily. back Sign up For more information, read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use . Sources: Praga , DriveTribe / YouTube Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Bloomberg
10 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Russia Accuses Serbia of Backstabbing by Helping Arm Ukraine
Russia 's spy agency accused Serbia of selling weapons to Ukraine through third countries, potentially straining a relationship with a traditional ally that relies on Moscow for energy supplies. Serbia has furnished Ukraine with hundreds of thousands of shells for rocket launchers, howitzers and 1 million rounds of small-arms ammunition, according to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. The sales allegedly went through Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria and more recently through African countries.
The Independent
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
French Open 2025: Coco Gauff's serve is not at its best but she gets the breaks for a win
Coco Gauff kept getting herself in some trouble with shaky serving in the French Open's second round, and she kept putting herself back in position to win by breaking right back Thursday. The second-seeded Gauff, pursuing her first title at Roland-Garros, eliminated 172nd-ranked qualifier Tereza Valentova of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-4 in 75 minutes on a partly cloudy, warm afternoon in Court Suzanne-Lenglen. Amid a soundtrack of sirens from nearby streets and roars from nearby courts, 2023 U.S. Open champion Gauff only managed to produce 11 winners, five fewer than her far-less-experienced opponent. Gauff also finished with 23 unforced errors, a total that included a half-dozen double-faults. Against Valentova, an 18-year-old who won the junior title at the French Open last year and was competing in the main draw at a major tournament for the first time, Gauff got broken five times. Four of those came in the second set — and each time, the 21-year-old Floridian managed to immediately rebound to claim Valentova's very next service game. 'There is a sense of urgency after getting broken, for sure. You don't want to get too far behind. You don't want to get two breaks down. You can live with one break. But she's definitely got to serve better and do a better job of holding as the tournament progresses,' said Gauff's father, Corey. 'She's probably been one of the best returners of serve on the tour the last two to three months. But that's not what you want. You want to hold first, for sure. It's not really a break until you hold.' On Saturday, 2022 runner-up Gauff will try to reach the fourth round in Paris for the fifth consecutive appearance, facing another Czech player, Marie Bouzkova. What else happened at the French Open on Thursday? Other winners in the women's bracket included No. 3 Jessica Pegula, who was the runner-up at last year's U.S. Open, 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva, and 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, who reached the 2019 final at Roland-Garros. Vondrousova, who is unseeded this year, eliminated No. 25 Magdalena Frech 6-0, 4-6, 6-3 on Court 6 and then went out to sit in the stands at Lenglen to watch Gauff vs. Valentova. In men's play, No. 1 Jannik Sinner ended the career of 38-year-old Richard Gasquet by beating the Frenchman 6-3, 6-0, 6-4. No. 3 Alexander Zverev and No. 14 Arthur Fils won, while 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic was in late action against Corentin Moutet of France. Who is on the schedule at Roland-Garros on Friday? No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka will begin third-round play at Court Philippe-Chatrier on Day 6 by facing Olga Danilovic, while the night match in the main stadium features defending champion Carlos Alcaraz against Damir Džumhur, who hurt his left knee during a fall in his second-round win. Elsewhere, Iga Swiatek continues her bid for a fourth consecutive championship by playing Jaqueline Cristian, 18-year-old qualifier Victoria Mboko of Canada takes on Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen, and No. 15 Frances Tiafoe faces No. 23 Sebastian Korda in an all-American matchup. ___
