Job vacancies continuing to fall
The level of job vacancies continued to fall in the first quarter of the year according to the latest ‘Jobs Index’ from hiring platform IrishJobs. Vacancies were down by 3% compared to the previous quarter and declined by 28% on a year-on-year basis. The quarterly drop was the lowest fall in six successive quarters which […]
Diesel & petrol prices hit highest level so far this year
The latest AA Ireland fuel price survey shows that petrol and diesel prices have hit their highest level so far this year. AA Ireland said that petrol and diesel prices have increased over the last few weeks after a fall was reported in March. Petrol prices rose to €1.81 a litre in April, while diesel […]
EU new car sales drop by 5.2% in March, says ACEA
New car sales in the European Union fell by 5.2% year-on-year in March, marking the first decline this year and the biggest since July 2022, Europe’s auto industry body said today, citing the impact of early Easter holidays and a market downturn. Top European carmakers Volkswagen and Stellantis have said the market will be tough […]
Property price growth speeds up to 6.1% in February – CSO
New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that residential property prices grew at the fastest annual pace in just over a year in February. Property prices increased by 6.1% in February compared to growth of 5.4% a month earlier, the CSO said. Year-on-year price growth had cooled from a recent peak of 15.1% in […]
Confirmed euro zone inflation fall bolsters ECB’s June rate cut plan
Euro zone inflation slowed across the board last month, reinforcing expectations for a European Central Bank interest rate cut in June, even as rising energy costs and a weak euro cloud the outlook, final data from Eurostat showed today. Inflation in the 20 nations sharing the euro currency slowed to 2.4% last month from 2.6% […]
Govt agrees to delay date of Patent referendum
The Government has agreed to defer the date for the referendum on the EU’s Unified Patent Court, Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke has confirmed. It was expected that the referendum would take place on 7 June, the same date as the local and European elections. “While the Government continues to believe that joining the UPC […]
Both exports and imports fall in February – CSO
Ireland’s exports and imports fell in February, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office. Goods exports in the month were worth €15.9 billion on an unadjusted basis, down more than €700m from the same time last year. Imports amounted to €10 billion, down more than €1.1 billion. Today’s CSO figures show that […]
Makhlouf expects that ‘all things equal’ the ECB will cut interest rates in June
The Governor of the Central Bank has said he expects that “all things equal” the European Central Bank will cut interest rates in June. However, Gabriel Makhlouf said he remains open-minded about the path which interest rates might take after that. “I think we’re pretty close to it now,” the Governor told CNBC in an […]
‘Significant’ drop in job openings in first quarter
There was a “significant” drop in job openings in the first quarter of the year, according to the latest Quarterly Employment Monitor from recruitment firm Morgan McKinley. The research showed a 13.8% decrease in job openings compared with the previous quarter and a year-on-year decline of 29.6%. The first quarter of the year saw a […]
Global cooperation needed around systemic risks from non-bank sector – Makhlouf
The Governor of the Central Bank has called for continued global coordination that will lead to progress in dealing with systemic risks arising from the non-bank sector. Gabriel Makhlouf said the existing regulatory framework provides a good starting point to deal with the issues, but has not been designed for this purpose. Speaking in Washington […]
Euro zone inflation heading to 2% after ‘bumpy’ road – ECB’s Lane
Euro zone inflation is heading to the European Central Bank’s 2% target next year after a “bumpy” road that will see it hover near current levels for now, the ECB’s chief economist Philip Lane said today. “Even if the near-term inflation outlook is somewhat bumpy, the projected convergence of inflation to the target in 2025 […]
Construction activity returned to growth in March
Construction activity rose in March for the first month since June of last year and at the most marked rate for nearly two years, new data shows. The BNP Paribas Real Estate Ireland Construction Index hit 51.6, just above the 50 mark that signals no change. The growth was propelled by renewed expansion in both […]
Ibec forecasts 2% growth but global uncertainty will weigh on Irish economy
Business group Ibec has said the Irish economy is still performing robustly, despite rising inflation and higher interest rates. In its first Quarterly Economic Outlook for the year, Ibec is forecasting growth in GDP of 2% this year and 3.4% in 2025. The report forecasts higher growth in exports, investment and it said the overall […]
ECB could cut rates more than three times in 2024 – Simkus
The European Central Bank could cut interest rates more than three times this year and the reductions should not be held back if the US Federal Reserve delays its own cuts, Lithuanian policymaker Gediminas Simkus said today. Simkus, making some of the most dovish comments since the ECB’s policy meeting on Thursday, also said the […]
Global IPO activity ‘cautiously optimistic’ in Q1
The global IPO market began the year on a cautiously optimistic note, according to analysis by EY, with activity declining in volume in the first quarter of the year, but increasing in value. 287 initial public offerings (IPOs) to the value of $23.7 billion were launched in the first three months of 2024, the report […]
Households saved €19 billion in 2023 – CSO
New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that households saved 12.09% of their income in the last quarter of 2023 – and 12.4% in 2023 as a whole. The CSO noted that the saving rate has averaged over 12% in the last two years, above the long-term pre-Covid average. The saving rate has declined […]
AI-enabled workforce critical for future investment – IDA
IDA Ireland has said that an AI-enabled workforce is critical to transforming Ireland’s enterprise base and supporting future investment in the country. The agency has published its latest Labour Market Pulse report in collaboration with Microsoft and LinkedIn. The research, entitled ‘Unlocking the Future: Ireland’s Prosperity with Generative AI’, is focused on artificial intelligence skills […]
WTO eyes global trade rebound but warns of risks
The World Trade Organization said today that global trade should rebound this year from an unexpected slump in 2023, but warned that regional conflicts, geopolitical tensions and economic policy uncertainty risked darkening the picture. In its annual trade forecast, the WTO disclosed that world trade volumes unexpectedly declined by 1.2% in 2023. That downgrade was […]