EWSS rates to be cut from today for some companies
The Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme rates will be cut from today, but not for those companies impacted by Covid restrictions introduced in December. The subsidy rates will fall from a range of €203 – €350 a week to €151.50 – €203 a week depending on an employee’s salary. According to provisional statistics published by Revenue […]
‘Rogue operators’ face competition law crackdown – Varadkar
Rogue operators could face a fine of €10 million or 10% of worldwide turnover for breaches of competition law, under a new law published today. The Competition (Amendment) Bill 2022 will give more powers to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission and the Commission for Communications Regulation. It will enhance the ability of the CCPC […]
Half of firms and workers expect pay to rise this year – Bank of Ireland Pulse
Half of firms are planning to raise basic pay for employees by an average of 4% this year, according to a survey of businesses and consumers by Bank of Ireland. A similar proportion of workers are expecting a pay rise of on average 3%, the bank’s Economic Pulse for January shows. It comes against the […]
Euro zone economy – 5 questions for the ECB
Record euro area inflation rates mean price pressures will top the agenda for European Central Bank policymakers meeting on Thursday. No immediate policy action is expected since the ECB in December laid out plans to wind up its €1.85 trillion pandemic stimulus scheme by the end of March. But price pressures remain strong and markets […]
One third of workers still have no pension coverage – CSO
A third of the working population aged between 20 and 69 continue to have no pension coverage outside of the State pension, new data from the Central Statistics Office shows. 73% of those with a supplementary pension said theirs was provided through their work, with 11% holding a personal pension and 16% possessing both. The […]
Raising capital and recruiting staff top problems for start-ups, survey finds
Raising capital and recruiting and retaining staff are the biggest challenges facing Irish tech start-ups, according to the findings of a survey carried out by Scale Ireland. 230 start-up founders and CEOs contributed to the survey, which aims to gauge the sentiment of entrepreneurs in the sector. It looks at key issues including the economy, […]
Consumers encouraged to compare, switch and save with CCPC Money Tools
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has launched a new Money Tools campaign which aims to provide consumers with information on how to compare and switch various financial services including mortgages, current accounts and credit cards. The CCPC Money Tools allows consumers to quickly and easily compare features, including maintenance fees, charges and interest rates, […]
Jobseeker payments to be collected in post office again
Recipients of jobseekers’ payments will soon have to attend a post office again in order to collect them, under plans announced by the Minister for Social Protection. In 2020 as the Covid-19 pandemic hit, recipients were given the option of having the payments made electronically directly into their bank accounts. This was to try to […]
€10m investment fund for sustainable start-ups launched
A new €10m fund has been established to invest in socially-conscious start-ups on the island of Ireland. The Impact Syndicate, which is being launched by the Halo Business Angel Network, will look to back firms that are seeking to make “positive and measurable social and environmental change alongside financial returns”. Its members will make investments […]
Consumer confidence improves on easing of Omicron fears
Consumer sentiment in January recovered much of the loss it suffered in December in the face of a surge in the highly contagious Omicron variant, a survey showed today, with a further improvement expected next month. The KBC Bank Ireland consumer sentiment index climbed to 81.9 in January from 74.9 in December, falling short of […]
Number of mortgage drawdowns in 2021 hit 12 year high
Last year saw the highest number of mortgage drawdowns since 2009, worth a total value of €10.5 billion. 43,994 mortgages were drawn down in 2021, a 9.4% increase on the previous year. Figures from Banking and Payments Federation Ireland show the value of mortgage drawdowns last year was the highest since 2008, when the financial […]
Consumers lack awareness of credit card interest rates, survey reveals
New research suggests that 65% of consumers don’t know how their credit card interest is calculated. The survey carried out by the Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) shows that this figure is up 7% on the previous survey conducted in 2020. Of the respondents who said they are familiar with the credit card interest […]
Economy expected to continue to grow strongly this year, Central Bank forecasts
The Central Bank has said the economy is expected to continue to grow strongly this year. Its latest Quarterly Bulletin forecasts growth in the domestic economy of just over 7% in 2022. However, inflation is expected to be higher for longer than previously thought, although it is expected to wane in the second half of […]
Central Bank chief warns of inflation risks
The Governor of the Central Bank has said “the prospects for Ireland’s economy appear bright” but warned that the risks to inflation in Ireland remain “on the upside”. Gabriel Makhlouf made his remarks at on online webinar hosted by the Institute of Directors. On inflation, the Central Bank Governor said it is expected to remain […]
Cabinet to sign-off on €100 electricity credit scheme
The Cabinet is set to sign-off on a €210 million legislative plan at their weekly meeting this morning, which aims to assist households struggling with the rising cost of electricity bills. Under the scheme, all domestic electricity customers will receive a once-off €100 credit, which will be operated by ESB Networks. The scheme will not […]
Oil prices rebound as growing geopolitical tensions fuel supply fears
Oil prices bounced back today, recovering some of the previous day’s losses, as growing tension in Eastern Europe and the Middle East fuelled concerns over possible supply disruptions. Brent crude futures rose 61 cents, or 0.7%, to $86.88 a barrel this morning after touching a session high of $87.27 a barrel earlier, reversing a 1.8% […]
Phased return to the workplace begins
Employers can start bringing staff back into the workplace from today onwards, following the announcement of the easing of Covid-19 restrictions on Friday. However, unions have urged businesses to exercise caution and consult with staff as the process begins. Announcing the changes on Friday, the Taoiseach said the return to physical attendance in workplaces should […]
Euro zone recovery stuttered in January as Omicron hit services – PMI
The euro zone economic recovery weakened further this month as renewed restrictions imposed to contain the Omicron coronavirus variant put another dent in bloc’s dominant services activity and as prices continued to soar. With the variant sweeping across Europe governments have been encouraging citizens to stay home and avoid socialising or meeting in groups. IHS […]