The Daily Dozen: 12 things to know about Czechia today

Macron and Babiš|French President Emmanuel Macron was criticized for receiving Czech former Prime Minister and presidential contender Andrej Babiš days ahead of the Czech presidential elections, Euractiv reports. Babiš posted about the meeting on social media, and also said he was "glad that the most important European politician found time for me and we have such friendly relations."

Food prices|The food items whose prices rose the most in 2022 were eggs and sugar, while the prices for beer increased the least, according to Seznam Zprávy. A case in point is the price of a pack of ten eggs in the Albert supermarket, which rose from CZK 35 to 60. Most beer brands, on the other hand, only saw price increases of CZK 1 in supermarkets last year.

Hoodies for Ukraine|The Ministry of Industry and Trade is auctioning off hoodies to raise money for the Let's Light Up Ukraine crowdfunding campaign dedicated to the restoration and reparation of Ukraine's energy infrastructure, ČTK reports. Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Síkela said that the 70 hoodies signed by him, other Czech politicians and celebrities, as well as Ukrainian personalities will have a starting price of CZK 2,600 apiece.

Škoda cars|Czech automaker Škoda announced several launches coming up this year, according to auto.cz. Martin Jahn, member of the Škoda Auto board of directors for the area of ​​Sales and Marketing, said the brand will release "new generation of the Kodiaq and Superb, as well as the facelifts of the Kamiq and Scala models." Jahn added that Škoda will also launch "three new fully electric models" by early 2026.

Deadly accident|Czech racer Aleš Loprais today confirmed that his truck was involved in the death of a spectator who died at the Rally Dakar race Tuesday after a fatal collision. Loprais has reported to the authorities for investigation, and withdrew from today's race. Read more in our story.

Metro news|The metro stop at náměstí Jiřího z Poděbrad will close on Jan. 14 and be out of service until the end of October due to ongoing renovations. During the closure, trains on the metro A (green) line will go between the náměstí Míru and Flora stations without stopping at Jiřího z Poděbrad in either direction. Read more in our story.

Prague Zoo|Last year saw the births of many rare animals and the opening of the largest pavilion in the Prague Zoo’s history. The zoo remained one of the most popular attraction in the Czech capital, with visitor numbers recovering due to the end of Covid restrictions. Read more in our story.

Victory for Kvitová|Czech tennis player Petra Kvitová has reached the quarter-finals of the Adelaide International tennis tournament after defeating Chinese Zheng Qinwen. The Czech tennis player, who is currently ranked 16th in the world, remains undefeated in four matches this year, her best performance since 2011 as Xinhua notes.

Streaming news|Several Czech series will make their way to the SkyShowtime streaming platform, MediaGuru reports. These are the political mini-series The Sleepers (Bez vědomí) and the travel-food reality show Czech It Out! (Spolu a Hladoví), both of which initially aired on HBO Max. SkyShowtime also acquired the rights to a new Czech series that HBO filmed but didn't air, called The Winner, which follows the life of a prime minister after he left office.