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State-subsidised travel for senior citizens and students has led to full buses in the Czech Republic, iDnes.cz reported. Experts say the government scheme is encouraging existing passengers to travel more.

The Czech Republic has dropped by three positions to 32nd place in the World Economic Forum’s 2019 Global Competitiveness Report. Despite that, Czechia remains the most competitive economy in Central Europe, suggests the rating. It finished behind Estonia, but ahead of the other Visegard Four countries, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary.

The Czech Republic is now ahead of Spain in terms of GDP per capita adjusted to purchasing power parity (PPP). At least according to the latest OECD data, which show the country ranked 27th among the organisation’s 36 member states, with Spain one place behind, news site Aktuálně reports. However, the country still ranks bellow the EU average.

The Czech state is planning to limit the access that manufacturers and farmers have to water in times of drought, iHned.cz reported. However, critics say new legislation to that effect could adversely impact some businesses and spark lawsuits.

Public phone booths are soon to disappear from Czech streets. Mobile phone operator O2 announced on Wednesday that it will terminate their operation by the end of the year. The only exception will be small villages, where the operation of public payphones is required by law.

Czech university graduates are getting more demanding in terms of their starting salaries, suggests a survey carried out by Swedish consultancy Universum, published by the daily Hospodářské noviny on Wednesday.

The lower house‘s Investigatory Commission on OKD announced on Tuesday that it has decided to file a criminal complaint against four former government ministers for their role in the privatisation of the Silesian coal mining joint-stock company Ostravsko-karvinské doly (OKD). Among them is the former prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka. According to the commission, the privatisation and subsequent events were in contradiction to the interests of the state.

Moody’s has raised the Czech Republic’s credit rating by one level. It cited the country’s strong budget performance and low debt as the main reasons for its first upgrade since 2002.

US electric car maker Tesla has opened its first showroom in the Czech Republic. Its official dealership is in Prague’s Vysočany district, where Tesla already operates a service centre. Visitors to the showroom can try all Tesla models, including Model S and X, as well as the most affordable Model 3, which sells for 1.2 million crowns.

As tributes to the late Czech singer Karel Gott pour in from at home and abroad following news of his death on Wednesday, the Kodl Art Gallery in Prague has announced it is putting one of the singer’s paintings up for action. Although Karel Gott was an amateur, self-taught painter interest in it is expected to be huge.