Business News

Irish companies show impressive flexibility with diversification to Europe

28th July 2020

One of the challenges we face in growing our economy is the limited size of our domestic market. Ireland’s entry into the then EEC in 1973, and subsequent adoption of the euro in 2002, opened the door to a large and developed marketplace. As the EU has progressed and expanded the four freedoms – goods, […]

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Minister signals that couples with combined income of more than €75k will be eligible for affordable homes scheme

28th July 2020

HOUSING Minister Darragh O’Brien has signalled that couples who have a gross combined income of more than €75,000 will be eligible for a new affordable homes scheme. He also told the Dáil that he intends the guide price for such housing to be between €160,000 and €260,000 as he clashed with Sinn Féin’s Eoin Ó […]

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Consumer index stalling but firms’ confidence comes back, study says

27th July 2020

Consumer sentiment continues to lag behind business confidence, fresh data from Bank of Ireland suggests. Bank of Ireland’s regular ‘Economic Pulse’ combines business and consumer elements to track sentiment in the economy month to month. The index was up 5.5 on last month but down 21.0 compared with a year ago. Business confidence has risen […]

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Extra €2.5bn to be spent on health, business supports

30th June 2020

The Dáil has agreed to spend at least another €2.5 billion on health and business supports due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly confirmed that an additional €2bn was required to pay for health services this year, bringing the department’s revised spending estimate for 2020 to almost €20bn. The estimate has increased by upwards of […]

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Irish economy set to grow by 3.4% in 2020, according to EY forecast

17th February 2020

Accountancy firm EY has revised upwards its economic forecast for this year. EY’s latest Economic Eye report said it expects to see GDP growth of 3.4% for 2020. That is expected to moderate to 2.8% in 2021 and 2.7% in 2022. Professor Neil Gibson, Chief Economist for EY Ireland, said they revised the forecast following […]

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NTMA to hold one bond auction in Q1 after early syndicated sale

10th January 2020

The National Treasury Management Agency said it will hold one bond auction in the first quarter of the year on March 12. The NTMA covered around a third of its funding target for 2020 with a syndicated sale yesterday. It kicked off its funding drive by raising €4 billion via a new 15-year bond sale […]

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Unemployment rate holds steady at 4.8% in November – CSO

5th December 2019

The unemployment rate held steady at 4.8% in November to remain at the lowest level in almost 13 years, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show.  The CSO said the seasonally adjusted number of people who were unemployed stood at 117,800 in November, up marginally from October.   But when compared to November last […]

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Revenue warning consumers about hidden costs of online shopping

27th November 2019

Revenue is cautioning consumers to be aware of hidden taxes and charges when they’re buying goods online in the run into Christmas and discount days such as Black Friday. They are reminding shoppers that while the cost of goods advertised online can appear attractively low, it may because tax and duty has not been included […]

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Average weekly earnings rise by 3.4% in 2018 – CSO

19th November 2019

Average weekly earnings were €740 in 2018, an increase of 3.4% on the previous year, according to new statistics released by the Central Statistics Office.  However, those on higher than average salaries can skew the numbers and the CSO pointed out that 63% of workers earn less than the average while 37% earn above the […]

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UK economy grows at slowest annual rate since 2010 in Q3

12th November 2019

The UK economy grew at the slowest annual rate in nearly a decade in the three months to the end of September, as a global slowdown and Brexit worries hit business investment and manufacturing.  Year-on-year gross domestic product growth slowed to 1% from 1.3% in the second quarter, Britain’s Office for National Statistics said. This […]

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