Czech Republic - Factors To Watch on May 20

                                
 PRAGUE, May 20 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press
reports and events to watch which may affect Czech financial
markets on Thursday.
                                
 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/]
============================EVENTS============================
                                
 PRAGUE - Czech central bank governing board to hold a
regular weekly meeting. It is not scheduled to discuss monetary
policy issues.
                                
 Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-PLCY]
                                
 
                                
 PRAGUE - 13-week T-bill auction.
                                
 Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-DBT]
                                
 
                                
 PRAGUE - Developer Orco Property Group <ORCOsp.PR> should
release first quarter results.
                                
 Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-RES]
                                
 
                                
 PRAGUE - Artificial textile maker Pegas Nonwovens
<PGSNsp.PR> should release first quarter results.
                                
 Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-RES]
                                
 
                                
 VIENNA, Austria - Austria's Vienna Insurance Group <VIGR.VI>
<VIGRsp.PR> should release first quarter results.
                                
 Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-RES]
                                
 
==========================TOP NEWS============================
                                
 
                                
 CEE ASSETS WEAK: Central European assets remained weak but
calmer on Wednesday afternoon following an early plunge after
Germany's move to clamp down on naked short selling hurt the
euro. 
                                
 Story: [ID:nLDE64I0GQ] Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-CEEU]
                                
 
                                
 OUTAGES,BAD WEATHER BOOST POWER SPOT PRICES: Plant outages,
lower wind supply and chilly temperatures in the region helped
boost Czech spot prices on Wednesday while worries about the
economy and future energy demand weighed on power futures,
traders said.
                                
 Story: [ID:nLDE64I1X8] Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-ELG]
                                
 
                                
 CZECHS DON'T PLAN SHORT-SELLING BAN NOW: The Czech central
bank, which supervises and regulates the country's financial
markets, is not considering a ban on naked short-selling of
financial instruments, it said on Wednesday.
                                
 Story: [ID:nPRG004149]  Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-MMT]
                                
 
                                
 SOCDEM LEADS BUT ELECTION OUTCOME UNCERTAIN: The Czech
left-wing Social Democrats widened their lead over the rightist
Civic Democrats, a poll showed on Wednesday, but gains by other
centre-right parties kept the outcome of a May 28-29 election
highly uncertain.
                                
 Story: [ID:nLDE64I1FX] Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-POL]
                                
 
                                
 ORCO EXITS CREDIT PROTECTION: Shares in Orco Property Group
<ORCO.PA> <ORCOsp.PR> jumped on Wednesday after the developer
said a Paris court had approved a plan exiting the group from
its more than year-long creditor protection period.
                                
 Story: [ID:nLDE64I11R] Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-REA]
                                
 
                                
 NWR SEES Q2 REBOUND: A sell-down in inventories pushed coal
miner New World Resources (NWR) <NWRS.L> <NWRSsp.PR> back into
to a loss in the first quarter, missing expectations for a
second straight quarterly profit.
                                
 Story: [ID:nLDE64I08A] Related News [RTRS-LEN-CZ-COA]
 ---------------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT ------------------------
 Index/Crown Currency  Latest    Prev    Pct change   Pct change
                                
                              close   on day       in 2010
 Czech Equities <.PX>   1190,3      1190,3    -2,07       6,53
vs Euro   <EURCZK=>    25,772    25,73    -0,16      2,07
vs Dollar    <CZK=>    20,903     20,854   -0,23       -13,75
 U.S. Equities <.DJI>  10444,37  10510,95  -0,63      0,16
 Pvs close or current levels vs prior domestic close at 1500 GMT
===========================PRESS DIGEST========================
                                
 MORTGAGE LENDING FELL: The volume of provided mortgages fell
by 15.3 percent year on year in April to 6.4 billion Czech
crowns ($311.6 million), Hypoindex data showed. This was despite
a 0.12 percentage point drop in the average market interest rate
to 5.29 percent, more than a two year low.
                                
 Hospodarske Noviny, page 20
                                
 
                                
 HEDGE FUNDS, PRIVATE EQUITY FUNDS REGULATION: Czech central
bank Vice Governor Miroslav Singer said neither hedge funds nor
private equity funds were to blame for the financial markets
turmoil, which was why the Czech Republic was against plans to
tighten regulation of these funds. The Czech financial sector
was relatively small, unlike in other countries, and it would
not be a problem to finance it if it got in to a critical
situation. 
                                
 Hospodarske Noviny, page 3
                                
 
                                
 CZECH CENBANKER ON EURO ZONE: The euro zone crisis can only
be resolved through tightening of its budget discipline and a
plan the EU would supervise countries' budgets is not enough,
Czech central bank board member Robert Holman said. It is now
clear that a single currency requires a single European budget
and fiscal discipline, which is a feature of a federal state,
such as the United States. ECB's plan to buy treasury bonds may
increase the threat of future inflation in the euro zone, he
said.
                                
 Hospodarske Noviny, page 10

                                
 ECM LOSS: Developer ECM <ECMPsp.PR> showed a net loss of 6
million euros, deeper than the 0.9 million in the same period a
year ago.
                                
 Hospodarske Noviny, page 27
                                
 
                                
 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>

                                
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 (Compiled by Jana Mlcochova)
                                
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