EU support for SMEs compensates for reduced government aid
According to the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT), almost two million people are employed in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
According to the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT), almost two million people are employed in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Atardius started operating officially in the Czech Republic yesterday.
Austria's Oberbank will be the first bank to enter the Czech market after the country joins the European Union.
The Czech government had turned its back on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The European Commission in a report last year criticised Central and Eastern European countries for the state of the small- and medium-size enterprise (SME) sector.
Bohuslav Sobotka, the finance minister, says that the cabinet has approved the ministry’s proposal to wind up the state-owned debt-factoring institution Ceska Konsolidacni Agentura (CKA) by the end of 2007, well ahead of schedule.
Ceskoslovenska Obchodni Banka (CSOB) and its subsidiary CSOB Leasing have received a loan of Ђ50m (CZK 1.6 bn) from the European Investment Bank to fund investment in Czech small- and medium- sized businesses (SMEs).
The Czech Republic is on target to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) amounting to some US$4 billion (CZK 110 billion) in 2003 and US$3-5 billion in the coming years, head of the Czech Invest agency said.
An amendment passed by the Czech parliament will cut corporate income tax from 31 % to 24 % by the year 2006. The tax is expected to save companies CZK 33.5 bn over the next three years.
The Czech business environment is increasingly confusing, corruption among government clerks is growing and the work of the courts is worsening, a poll of business people has shown.