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Descriptive Economics of the Czech Republic

* Exchange students do not have to consider this information when selecting suitable courses for an exchange stay.

Course Unit Code156-0300/06
Number of ECTS Credits Allocated3 ECTS credits
Type of Course Unit *Compulsory
Level of Course Unit *First Cycle
Year of Study *First Year
Semester when the Course Unit is deliveredWinter Semester
Mode of DeliveryFace-to-face
Language of InstructionCzech
Prerequisites and Co-Requisites There are no prerequisites or co-requisites for this course unit
Name of Lecturer(s)Personal IDName
GOT40prof. Ing. Jaromír Gottvald, CSc.
ADA364Ing. Emil Adámek, Ph.D.
SUL0018Ing. Jan Šulák, Ph.D.
Summary
Learning Outcomes of the Course Unit
- to define the Czech economic system before and after 1989;
- to outline the Czech demographic development in the economic context;
- to recognise changes of the Czech living standard;
- to present basic macroeconomic indicators;
- to describe sectors of economy.
Course Contents
1. Introduction
- Work with statistical data: the search and evaluation of economic data, their reliability;
- Common mistakes when working with statistical data, primary versus
secondary sources;
2. Population and Czech Economy
- Population structure: basic demographic characteristics, including the trend of
their development;
- Demographic processes, including development trends;
3. Prognosis of population development, selected demographic problems and their
economic impact on society
- Social and economic impact of demographic aging of the Czech population, the situation in the EU and the world;
- Selected aspects of migration, economic consequences, the situation in the Czech Republic (CR) and the EU;
4. Human capital
- Definition of basic concepts: human capital, labor, employment,
unemployment; rate of unemployment in CR;
- Social and economic impacts of unemployment, relation between unemployment and economic growth;
5. The Living standard and quality of life
- Healthcare: health care system, financing,
- Education in CR
- Indicators of quality of life: Human development index, environmental index, etc.
- Living standards: statistics of household accounts, income, expenditure and
consumption;
6. Macro-economic level of the Czech economy
- GDP and its measurement method, the shadow economy and other disadvantages of measuring GDP;
- Inflation and interest rates, the basic functions of a Central Bank;
- International comparisons and forecasts of further development of the Czech economy;
7. The public sector in the CR
- Private and public goods, social consensus, the welfare state;
- Basic principle of operation of the public budget, state spending
budget, creation of the state budget;
8. Foreign trade and balance of payments CR
- Commodity and territorial structure of foreign trade;
- The balance of services and tourism;
- Balance of payments: the link between individual accounts PB;
- Exchange rates and their impact on export;
- Support for export.
9. Transport, Energy and Environment CR
- Environment CR, compared with the past, structural changes in the economy,
current state of the environment in the CR;
- Transport - structure, impact on the environment, the link to economic growth;
- Energy - Energy resources and their utilization;
- New trends in transportation and alternative energy sources, biofuels,
10. The industry structure of the economy CR
- International classification of economic activities, sectors of the economy
- Agriculture - raw material base of the CR, - mining and quarrying
11. Industry and Construction
- Development of Czech industry since nineties to the present
- Construction: structure, transport infrastructure: the link to unemployment and
economic growth
12. The service sector: development, some sectors: retail, banking,
information and communication activities.
13. Czech Republic in international comparison.
Recommended or Required Reading
Required Reading:
Czech Statistical Office. Statistical yearbook of the Czech Republic 2013. Praha: Czech Statistical Office, 2014. ISBN 978-80-250-2105-7.
Czech Statistical Office. Czech Republic in international comparison 2013. Praha: Czech Statistical Office, 2014. ISBN 978-80-250-2042-5.
Czech Statistical Office. Indicators of social and economic development of the Czech Republic. Praha: Czech Statistical Office, 2013.
TICHÁ, Michaela. Česká ekonomika na prahu 21. století v kontextu společenského vývoje. Ostrava: VŠB-TU Ostrava, 2015.
ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Statistická ročenka České republiky 2013 = Statistical yearbook of the Czech Republic 2013. Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2014. ISBN 978-80-250-2105-7.
ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Česká republika v datech: (1989 až 2009). Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2011. ISBN 978-80-250-2085-2.
ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Česká republika v mezinárodním srovnání: (vybrané údaje) = Czech Republic in international comparison (selected indicators). Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2014. ISBN 978-80-250-2163-7.
Recommended Reading:
Czech Statistical Office. Demographic Yearbook of the Czech Republic. Praha: Czech Statistical Office, 2013.
Czech Statistical Office. Household income and living conditions. Praha: Czech Statistical Office, 2013.

ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Příjmy a životní podmínky domácností v roce 2013. Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2014. ISBN 978-80-250-2200-9.
ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Tendence a faktory makroekonomického vývoje a kvality života v České republice ČR v roce 2012. Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2013. ISBN 978-80-250-2022-7.
ČESKÝ STATISTICKÝ ÚŘAD. Vývoj obyvatelstva České republiky v roce 2013. Praha: Český statistický úřad, 2014. ISBN 978-250-80-2227-6.
MINISTERSTVO PRÁCE A SOCIÁLNÍCH VĚCÍ. Statistická ročenka trhu práce v České republice 2011. Praha: Ministerstvo práce a sociálních věcí, 2012. ISBN 978-80-7421-043-3.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Lectures, Tutorials
Assesment methods and criteria
Task TitleTask TypeMaximum Number of Points
(Act. for Subtasks)
Minimum Number of Points for Task Passing
Credit and ExaminationCredit and Examination100 (100)51
        CreditCredit28 15
        ExaminationExamination72 36