Czech Republic - Factors To Watch on May 19

                                
 PRAGUE, May 19 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press
reports and events to watch which may affect Czech financial
markets on Monday:
                                
 ALL TIMES GMT (Czech Republic: GMT + 1 hours)

 ======================== ECONOMIC DATA ========================
                                
 March retail sales due out at 0700 GMT. Market expects a 4.0
percent rise.
                                
 
                                
 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 Czech currency.............................[CZK/]
                                
 
========================= EVENTS ===============================
                                
 PRAGUE - Drug maker Zentiva posts first quarter results at
1000 GMT. It is expected to report a 23.6 percent drop in the
net profit for the first quarter due to weak sales at its key
markets and higher interest costs, a Reuters survey showed on
Friday.
                                
 Related news: [RTRS-LEN-CZ-DRU-RES] Poll: [ID:nL16652010]
                                
 
======================= TOP NEWS ===============================
                                
 PRAGUE - Czech central bank Vice-Governor Mojmir Hampl voted
for a 25 basis point interest rate rise at the bank's policy
meeting on May 7, minutes from the session showed.
                                
 [ID:nLPRG000807] Related news: [RTRS-LEN-CZ-CEN]
                                
 PRAGUE - One more interest rate increase may help the Czech
economy given signals on demand and the development of adjusted
inflation excluding fuels, central bank Vice-Governor Mojmir
Hampl said.
                                
 Story: [ID:nL19504004] Related news; [RTRS-LEN-CZ-CEN]
                                
 
==================== ELSEWHERE IN NEWS =========================
                                
 PRAGUE - Czech industrial producer prices were flat on the
month in April, putting the annual rate at 4.7 percent, after
March's 5.3 percent.
                                
 Story: [ID:nL16414659] Related news: [RTRS-LEN-CZ-ECI]
                                
 
                                
 PRAGUE - The Czech government sold a 0.63 percent stake in
power firm CEZ <CEZPsp.PR> on Monday, data from the Securities
Registry showed.
                                
 Story: [ID:nL16904050] Related news: [RTRS-LEN-CZ-ELG]
                                
 
                                
 PRAGUE - Slavia Prague won their first Czech title since
1996 by drawing Jablonec 2-2 on Saturday.
                                
 Story: [ID:L16621472]
 ---------------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT ------------------------
 Index/Crown Currency  Latest    Prev    Pct change   Pct change
                                
                              close   on day       in 2008
 Czech Equities  <.PX> 1,701.1  1,668.4   +1.96         -6.28
 vs Euro     <EURCZK=>  25.070   25.155   +0.34         +5.70
 vs Dollar      <CZK=>  16.037   16.308   +1.63        +13.24
 U.S. Equities  <.DJI>  12,987   12,993   -0.05         -2.10
 Pvs close or current levels vs prior domestic close at 1500
                                
 
====================== PRESS DIGEST ============================
                                
 LOWER DEFICIT: The 2008 central state budget deficit will be
about 20 billion crowns lower than the planned 70.8 billion
($4.38 billion), Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek said. He
also said he would not recommend to sell the Prague Airport for
less than 100 billion crowns in an upcoming privatisation. He
said that it was possible to repeat a sale of a small stake in
power firm CEZ <CEZPsp.PR> next year.
                                
 E15, page 16-18.
                                
 
                                
 COMMUNISTS: Communist Party (KSCM) leader Vojtech Filip won
reelection at the party's congress on the weekend.
                                
 Pravo, page 1.
                                
 
                                
 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 +420 224 190 477;
fax: +420 224 229 935
                                
 E-mail: prague.newsroom@reuters.com
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka)