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Plans to double public service apprenticeship places

The Government has announced plans for nine new apprenticeship programmes in the public service. If realised, the proposals will lead to the doubling of apprenticeship places in the public service including local authorities over the next two years. Currently there are around 373 such apprenticeships in operation, up 103 since 2021. The development of a […]

Irish economy will outperform EU peers – Mastercard

The Irish economy will continue to outperform its EU peers, according to the Mastercard Economics Institute, as consumer fundamentals remain strong. It said Irish consumers have been relatively resilient despite the huge inflation shock. A tight labour market with strong employment growth and historically low unemployment at 3.8% in June has supported the economy. Mastercard […]

Conveyancing delays leading to failed property sales – IPAV

Growing and serious delays in the conveyancing process are leading to property sales falling through, estate agents are reporting. A survey conducted by the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers (IPAV) has found that four out of every five agents say they have seen sales fail because of the problem. 26% said it occurred frequently, […]

Gas demand down by 20% in July – Gas Networks Ireland

New figures today show that gas demand decreased by 20% in July compared to the same month last year, and by 8% when compared to June. Gas Networks Ireland said that gas demand fell by 46% in the construction sector, by 32% in the large office sector and by 31% in the education sector. Gas […]

84% rise in commercial bus use in 2022, significantly below pre-Covid levels – report

The number of passengers using commercial bus services in Ireland rose last year by 84%, according to new figures from the National Transport Authority (NTA). The report shows there were almost 19 million passenger journeys on licensed public bus services in 2022, but that is still well below the 30 million seen in 2019, before […]

Decline in construction activity in July – BNP Paribas Real Estate

After having returned to growth in June, construction activity in Ireland saw a renewed decline in July, after the BNP Paribas Real Estate Purchasing Managers’ Index. It also highlighted the first fall-off in new orders in six months. John McCartney, Director & Head of Research at BNP Paribas Real Estate Ireland, said the decline in […]

Climate accelerator programme opens for submissions

A new climate accelerator programme aimed at SMEs and start-ups operating in the built environment has opened for submissions. The Built Environment Accelerator is a collaboration between Tangent, Trinity College Dublin’s Ideas Workspace, and innovation hub Green TechHQ. It is supported by EIT (European Institute of Technology) Climate KIC (Knowledge and Innovation Community). Recognising the […]

Annual rate of inflation falls slightly in July – CSO

The annual rate of inflation stood at 5.8% in July, down from 6.1% in the 12 months to the end of June, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show. However, the cost of goods and services rose by 0.2% in July when compared with June, according to the Consumer Price Index. The CSO noted […]

Advertised rents rise another 2.4% in second quarter – Daft.ie

Advertised rents across the country increased by 2.4% between April and June, when compared to the first three months of the year. According to property listings website Daft.ie, the average market rent nationally in the second quarter stood at just under €1,800. It means rents sought in the open market are now 10.7% higher than […]

Average interest rate on new mortgages here now above 4%

The average interest rate on new mortgage arrangements in Ireland has breached the 4% mark. Figures from the Central Bank show that the average interest rate on new mortgages rose from 3.84% in May to 4.04% in June. The increase of 0.2 percentage points was the second biggest jump in average rates in the euro […]

Advertised rents rise another 2.4% in second quarter – Daft.ie

Advertised rents across the country increased by 2.4% between April and June, when compared to the first three months of the year. According to property listings website Daft.ie, the average market rent nationally in the second quarter stood at just under €1,800. It means rents sought in the open market are now 10.7% higher than […]

Government body faced difficulty in arranging power supplies for state agencies due to market volatility

The Government body responsible for arranging power supply for state agencies could not even get companies to bid to provide electricity because of “extreme volatility” in energy prices last year. The Office of Government Procurement (OGP) tried to run a second tender competition, even making changes to the contract to encourage a “more positive market […]

Ireland had highest consumer prices in EU in 2021

Ireland had the highest price levels for consumer goods and services across the 27 countries of the European Union in 2021, a report from the Central Statistics Office has found. Prices were 43.8% above the average of the 27 countries, known as the EU27, it concluded. The latest Measuring Ireland’s Progress report covers the year […]

Retail spend in capital rose again in second quarter

Retail spending in Dublin rose again between April and June, the ninth consecutive quarterly increase. Spend was up 1.1% on the previous quarter and 4.7% on the same period a year earlier, according to the latest MasterCard SpendingPulse, produced in conjunction with Grant Thornton and the four Dublin local authorities. However, while strong domestic demand […]

Euro zone bond yields drop as risk sentiment worsens, inflation fears ease

Euro zone bond yields dropped today as a European Central Bank (ECB) survey showed consumers expect inflation to keep slowing, while risk sentiment worsened on sticky inflation in Germany, weak China trade data and pressure on Italian banks. The ECB’s monthly Consumer Expectations Survey showed the median respondent in the June edition expected inflation to […]

Ireland tops EU poll for working from home growth

Ireland is leading the charge in terms of how rapidly remote working is taking the place of traditional office-based work, according to analysis of Eurostat data by BNP Paribas Real Estate. Netherlands has the highest percentage of its workforce engaged in remote working (over 50%), while Ireland is adopting remote working at the fastest rate […]

Restaurants seek retention of 9% VAT rate

Ireland should retain the hospitality sector’s reduced VAT rate but only for food-related businesses, according to a restaurant representative group. Chief Executive of the Restaurants Association of Ireland Adrian Cummins warned that many food-related businesses will cease trading if the reduced rate of 9% is reverted – as planned – to the standard 13.5% next […]

Live Register figures edge 0.1% higher in July – CSO

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the seasonally adjusted Live Register total for July rose by 0.1%, or 200, from June to reach a total of 183,500 people. The CSO said the unadjusted Live Register total stood at 195,095 for last month. Of the 195,095 people on the unadjusted Live Register in […]