5G Race: Portugal jumped to 2nd in Europe for 5G take-up, with about 22% of users connected, beating Czechia and others as operators expand coverage after the 2021 spectrum auction. Czech-Serbia Business: Prime Minister Andrej Babiš met Serbia’s leadership in Belgrade and floated a possible purchase of Czech-made Aero L-39 Skyfox training aircraft, with talks also covering energy, transport, mining, agriculture and automotive. Czech-China Trade Push: Chamber of Deputies speaker Tomio Okamura led a Czech business delegation to Beijing for a China-Czech economic conference, aiming to deepen cooperation in innovation, transport, aviation and sustainable development. Ukraine M&A Turnaround: KPMG reports foreign buyers completed 10 acquisitions of Ukrainian assets in H1 2026 (double a year earlier), with disclosed value up to $415m, led by tech and financial services. EU Merger Watch (Film): The European Commission cleared Paramount’s Warner Bros. Discovery deal with conditions, including ending Paramount’s UIP stake in the EEA within 13 months. Energy Costs (EU): Eurostat shows fuel and lubricant prices rose sharply across the EU; Bulgaria hit the steepest annual jump (26% in June), while Czechia saw the biggest monthly diesel drop (-11.3%). Prague Infrastructure: Charles Bridge maintenance is underway to remove algae and plant growth without disrupting pedestrians, using rope and boat access where needed. Defense & Industry: Embraer delivered the first C-390 Millennium to the Czech Air Force, boosting long-distance heavy cargo and NATO/emergency support.