This holiday season brings a mixed bag of financial news for Czech households preparing their traditional Christmas treats. While energy costs have decreased year-over-year, baking Christmas cookies will still be more expensive than last year, primarily due to significant increases in ingredient prices.
According to energy analyst Tomáš Vrňák from Ušetřeno.cz, running an electric oven for an hour costs less than 20 crowns, and baking a standard batch of Christmas cookies for an average family barely exceeds 100 crowns in electricity costs, even when factoring in the use of kitchen appliances.
However, the real price shock comes from basic ingredients. The Czech Statistical Office reports that a quarter-kilogram block of butter now costs 71 CZK, marking a 30% increase from last December. Egg prices have risen similarly, and hazelnuts are 25% more expensive. While flour has become cheaper by 16% and crystal sugar by 29%, the overall cost of Christmas baking has still increased significantly.
The energy situation shows some improvement, with the average price of electricity dropping from 4.10 CZK to 3.24 CZK per kilowatt-hour in November. However, consumers should note that while the energy component has decreased, the regulated portion of electricity prices has increased by more than 60% compared to last Christmas.
For those worried about holiday decorations, there’s good news: running LED Christmas lights for two weeks costs just a few crowns, and even watching holiday movies on an LED TV costs mere pennies per hour.