Czech economy emerges from recession

The Czech Republic has moved out of recession, registering economic growth of 0.6% in the second quarter compared with the preceding three-month period.

But the Czech Statistics Office said the economy was still down 1.3% compared with a year earlier.

The economy contracted continuously from the third quarter of 2011 through to the first quarter of 2013, the longest recession since the split of Czechoslovakia in 1993. To help growth, the central bank cut its key interest rate to a record low of 0.05% in November.

The Czech Republic was hit by a drop in demand among its biggest trading partners, the European countries that use the euro. The eurozone as a bloc also emerged from recession in the second quarter of 2013.