The Parliament's commission that has been investigating the state's role in the sad tale of the failed Czech bank IPB concluded its work yesterday with a fountain of allegations. Everybody has got its part, interestingly, though, it was mostly former officials who were criticized most: ex-governor Tosovsky ex-finance ministers Kocarnik and Pilip, ex-privatization ministers Jezek, Skalicky and Ceska. It just happens that they come mostly from other parties than the opposition pact of the ODS and the CSSD.
The public deficits discussion between the CSSD and ODS chairmen will not happen, after all. The ODS's chairman Vaclav Klaus feels offended by Vladimir Spidla's comments to his economic performance as the prime minister and will not talk to Spidla any more. Sounds funny? Unless you pay taxes in the Czech Republic, quite so…
Another twist in the "big bang", an ambitious economic strategy drafted by the industry ministry. Instead of CZK 265bn, originally envisaged by the plan, the Cabinet now faces an update that calls for CZK 162bn. Officials somewhat recalculated their expectations of funds available and, ooops, they could not find the money. The plan remains lunatic and vague. Good news is, though, that it no longer counts on further bond issues. It does, nevertheless, want CZK 35bn from privatization to be siphoned to the off-budgetary funds.
No significant changes on the currency market: the koruna holds firm vis-a-vis the euro at 33.85 CZK/EUR and firmed marginally to 39.25 CZK/USD.
(Ondřej Schneider)