Czech news in brief for May 13: Wednesday's top afternoon headlines

President Petr Pavel will take part in a memorial service to pay homage to the victims of Nazi persecution in Terezin on Sunday, the Czech presidential office announced today, with multiple events planned to mark the 81st anniversary of the liberation. More than 150,000 Jews from all across Europe were sent to the Terezin ghetto by the Nazis during World War II.

The annual inflation rate in the Czech Republic increased to 2.5 percent in April up from 1.9 percent the month before, according to the Czech statistical office, the highest since October. The price increase was mainly driven by fuel, although experts caution that the impact of the war in the Middle East on consumer prices cannot yet truly be assessed.

More than 80 percent of Czechs would support a social media ban for children under the age of 15, according to a new survey by the NMS agency, and 78 percent would be in favor of banning mobile phones in schools. Younger generations would be the least supportive of a ban, according to the poll, and more than half of Czech parents admit they struggle setting an example themselves when it comes to digital use.

The Twist franchise group announced that its two flagship brands - bubble tea store Bubblify and trdlenik shop Trdlokafe - have filed for bankruptcy. A total of three brands part of the Twist company's portfolio have now announced bankruptcy as the group faces questions and scrutiny about the sustainability of its business model.

Microbreweries across Czechia brewed a total of 383,000 hectoliters of beer last year, just about 2 percent less than in 2024, the Czech-Moravian Microbrewery Association announced. With beer consumption in general falling, larger breweries saw a bigger output drop of more than 4 percent in 2025. The Czech Republic currently has 520 microbreweries whose annual production is less than 10,000 hectoliters.