Czech Republic - Factors To Watch on Aug 12

                                
 PRAGUE, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press
reports and events to watch which may affect Czech financial
markets on Wednesday:
                                
 ALL TIMES GMT (Czech Republic: GMT + 2 hours)

=========================ECONOMIC DATA=========================
                                
 Real-time economic data releases....................<ECONCZ>
                                
 Previous stories on Czech data.............[CZ-RTRS-LEN-ECI]
                                
 Overview of economic data and forecasts..........<CZ/ECON15>
                                
 Updates on CEE currencies.............................[CEE/]
 
==========================TOP NEWS============================
                                
 DIVIDENDS: Dividend outflows from the Czech Republic hit
around 29.3 billion crowns ($1.62 billion) in June, denting the
country's current account balance, data showed on Tuesday
[ID:nLB669195] [ID:nPRA004700].
                                
 Story [ID:nLA263961] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-DIV]
                                
 
                                
 CEE FX: The Polish zloty and the Hungarian forint led a
retreat in central European currencies on Tuesday, as investors
booked recent gains, while slowing inflation kept the region's
units on weaker ground.
                                
 Story [ID:nLB624078] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-FRX]
                                
 
                                
 EASTERN EU: A string of less bleak data in central and
Eastern Europe suggests the financial crisis-driven economic
downturn across the region has started to ease.
                                
 Story [ID:nLA417541] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-CEEU]
                                
 
                                
 CURRENT ACCOUNT: The Czech current account showed a 16.03
billion crown ($884.2 million) deficit in June, bigger than the
13.5 billion gap forecast by analysts, data showed.
                                
 Story [ID:nLB669195] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-MCE]
                                
 
                                
 OUTPUT: Czech industrial output fell by 12.2 percent
year-on-year in June, roughly in line with a flash estimate of
12.3 percent released by the statistics office on July 31, data
showed.
                                
 Story [ID:nLB566860] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-MCE]
                                
 
                                
 GRAIN HARVEST: The Czech Republic's grain harvest will drop
10.4 percent this year to 6.72 million tonnes, the Czech
Statistics Bureau (CSU) said on Tuesday, in its second crop
estimate this season.
                                
 Story [ID:nPRA004699] Related news [RTRS-LEN-CZ-AGRI]
 ---------------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT ------------------------
 Index/Crown Currency  Latest    Prev    Pct change   Pct change
                                
                              close   on day       in 2009
 Czech Equities <.PX>   0        1113,6    0          n/a
vs Euro   <EURCZK=>    25,778    25,775    0,01      -3,64
vs Dollar    <CZK=>    18,257    18,221    0,2       -4,48
 U.S. Equities <.DJI>  9241,45   9337,95  -1,03       5,3
 Pvs close or current levels vs prior domestic close at 1500
==========================PRESS DIGEST========================
                                
 ELECTRICITY: The main Czech opposition party leader Jiri
Paroubek pledged his party would cut electricity prices by 20-30
percent as of January if it wins the October elections. It would
cancel the Prague Energy Exchange if it opposes the move and a
new rules that energy prices are set by a regulatory office.
                                
 Pravo, page 3
                                
 
                                
 Reuters has not verified the media reports, nor does it
vouch for their accuracy.
                                
    
 For Instant Views of key economic data click on    [CZ/INSTANT]
 For summary of economic data and forecasts          <CZ/ECON01>
 For diary of forthcoming Czech events                [CZ/DIARY]
 For calendar of east European economic indicators  [CONV/DIARY]
 TOP NEWS -- Emerging markets                         [TOP/EMRG]
 TOP NEWS -- Convergence watch                        [TOP/EAST]

 For an economic indicator diary for the euro zone, the United
 States and other Group of Seven countries see         <G7TODAY>

 For real-time stock market index quotes click in brackets:
 Warsaw WIG20 <.WIG20>  Budapest BUX <.BUX>  Prague PX <.PX>

                                
 News editor of the day: Jan Lopatka on +420 224 190 474;
fax: +420 224 229 935
                                
 E-mail: prague.newsroom@reuters.com
  (Compiled by Jana Mlcochova)