(MENAFN- AFP) The Czech economy grew by 0.2 percent in the third quarter of 2013 from output in the previous quarter, revised official data showed on Thursday, correcting earlier estimates suggesting shrinkage.This means the EU member of 10.5 million people is set for a recovery following a record 18-month recession that ended in the second quarter of 2013.Analysts, who follow the emerging economies in eastern and central Europe with great interest, are saying that in general countries in the region are set for recovery from the recent crisis and could be on the way to developing their potential."The (Czech) economy is improving. We can see it has really shaken off the recession," said David Marek, an analyst at Prague-based investment bank Patria Finance."The Czech economy is gaining strength. The growth is nowhere near strong, but the situation is getting better," he told AFP.But the Czech Statistical Office also said that gross domestic product (GDP) shrank by 1.2 percent on an annual basis in the third quarter, revising a previous estimate of a 1.3-percent contraction."The negative development was due to falling investment activity and weak foreign demand," statisticians said.The Czech Republic, which has yet to join the eurozone, has central Europe's third-biggest economy after Poland and Austria.The Czech central bank CNB expects the economy heavily dependent on car production and exports to the eurozone to post an 0.9-percent contraction for 2013, the same as in 2012, before growing by 1.5 percent this year. The statisticians said separately that inflation in full-year 2013 reached 1.4 percent, the lowest level since 2009.In December alone, prices grew by 1.4 percent on an annual basis after 1.1 percent in November. On a monthly basis, they rose by 0.4 percent on a growth in food and transport prices."The growth in inflation was expected, but the level has probably fallen under one percent again in January on cheaper electricity and no sales tax growth," said Marek.Low inflation led the Czech central bank to intervene on the forex market last November to weaken the koruna currency in a bid to boost exports and push inflation closer to the central bank's target of 2.0 percent by making imported goods more expensive.Several central European countries are grappling with unusually low inflation levels, and strong disinflation is also a matter of concern in some countries in western Europe.Separately, the Czech labour ministry said Thursday unemployment in December shot up by half a percentage point to 8.2 percent."The growth in unemployment is due mainly to seasonal factors, there are fewer jobs especially in the building sector when winter comes," Marek told AFP.
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