Summary of the main business news published by CTK on Feb 17:.

(From Czech News Agency)

PRAGUE - Retail sales in the Czech Republic increased by 2.7 pct in 2002 year-on-year, compared to 4.5 pct in 2001, but car dealers saw their sales fall by 2 pct year-on-year, their first decline in sales since 1999, the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) said today.

In December alone, retail sales were 4 pct higher year-on- year, the CSU said.

PRAGUE - Rising unemployment and lower trust of consumers were behind the lower rise of retail sales last year (2.7 pct against 2001's 4.5 pct), economists polled by CTK said today, adding that this year's growth will be somewhere between 3-4 pct due to the people's fears of unemployment.

Higher growth is predicted for 2004 when unemployment will be falling markedly.

PRAGUE - Revenues in services grew by 0.6 pct year- on-year in 2002, with the highest increase reported by telecoms (+3.4 pct), the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) announced in its preliminary results today.

In the last quarter alone, revenues in services fell by 0.2 pct yr/yr, but seasonally adjusted they rose by 0.5 pct.

PRAGUE - Trading in the Czech crown was calm once again today, and the Czech currency merely dipped to Kc31.48/EUR from the open of Kc31.43/EUR, unimpressed by the retail sales data for 2002, out this morning, Komercni banka dealers told CTK.

To the US dollar, the crown dropped from the open of Kc29.26/ $ to Kc29.40/$ and then rebounded to close at Kc29.33/$.

PRAGUE - Shares traded on the Prague bourse …