* The balance of payments showed a current account deficit of CZK 11.1bn in June after CZK 19.3bn in May. However, in May, the transfer of funds from a government account abroad to CME following the arbitration ruling affected the balance of payment.
* Retail sales rose by 7.5% in the year to June, that is the highest growth in last 19 months. Rising retail sales significantly contributed to the total sales in services that increased by 4.2% year-on-year in the second quarter.
* Industrial producer prices dropped by 0.2% in July due to lower prices of chemical products, rubber and plastic products. Annual deflation slowed down to 0.6% from 0.9% in June. Prices of agricultural producers dropped by 0.5%. Nevertheless, deflation switched to inflation (+1.5%) in year-on-year comparison for the first time since May 2002.
David Marek