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Following in the footsteps of Limebike electric scooters, Homeport Freebikes, and shared Rekola bikes, the Škoda Auto car manufacturer is launching its own service of shared electric scooters in Prague. The company is placing 50 electric scooters imported from Spain in the broad city centre and would like to see their number triple in the near future.

The sales of energy drinks in the Czech Republic have been booming in recent years. In 2018, the market with energy drinks increased by 2.4 billion crowns, the website Aktualnce.cz reported on Thursday. The results were published by the company Al-Namura, producer of the Big Shock! energy drink.

Czechs living in rented homes spend more than homeowners, according to a study by the Partners consulting agency, presented on Wednesday. On average, Czechs renting a home pay 1800 crowns a month more than those who own their home. At the same time, flats are rented mostly by people with lower income.

Plant-based “meat” is gaining popularity the world over and it is not just vegetarians who are jumping on the bandwagon. Chicken strips, patties, burgers or sausages made from plant substitutes are now widely available in the Czech Republic and despite the high price many are willing to give them a try.

The number of investments concluded by CzechInvest dropped significantly last year. The government agency for attracting investments helped to secure over 80 investment projects worth 36.7 billion crowns, company representatives announced on Monday. That is a drop by two fifths on the previous year, when investments, both foreign and local, amounted to 63 billion crowns.

A study published by the Czech Banking Association predicts housing prices will decrease slightly in the coming years, mainly in municipal districts where more apartment complexes are being built.

The vast majority of Czech consumers, some 97 percent, want tougher quality parameters on foodstuffs sold in the country, according to a June survey whose results were made public by the Czech Consumer Association on Tuesday. More than nine out of ten respondents also said that they wouldn’t mind if the tougher rules resulted in restrictions on cheap food imports.

Trust in the Czech economy experienced a slight increase in August according to the results of a monthly survey conducted by the Czech Statistics Office released on Monday. The rise is particularly thanks to greater optimism in the trade and services sectors. However, industry trust remains at a six year low and consumer trust has decreased.

Vehicle manufacturer Tatra Truck has signed a CZK 557 million contract with the Czech Army, according to which it will supply 71 transport vehicles in the coming years. The new deal was announced by the company’s spokesman Andrej Čírtek.

The total debt of Czech sat the end of June reached 2.38 trillion crowns, an increase of 6.7 percent in annual terms, according to the Banking and Non-Banking Client Information Register. At the same time, the amount of non-performing loans fell by 5.5 billion crowns to 31.4 billion crowns. The number of people who had difficulty repaying consumer loans fell by 61,000 to 215,000 year-on-year.