Tánaiste hopeful for decision on beef exports ‘within months’
Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said that he is hopeful that Chinese authorities will reach a decision on the resumption of Irish beef exports to China “within a matter of months”. Exports to China have been stopped after a case of atypical BSE was detected in a bovine animal in Ireland. Mr Martin, who is on […]
ECB must keep rates at or near 4% in 2024 to get inflation down – IMF
Rapid wage growth in the euro zone could keep inflation elevated longer and the European Central Bank should hold interest rates at or near record highs during next year to extinguish price pressures, the International Monetary Fund said today. The ECB broke a streak of ten rate hikes in a row last month, fuelling market […]
Underlying inflation progress not enough, says ECB’s Lane
The European Central Bank is seeing some progress in its efforts to push down underlying inflation but this is not yet enough, ECB chief economist Philip Lane told a conference in Riga today. Professor Lane said he does not take a lot of comfort from the recent rapid fall in overall inflation because this is […]
Competitiveness and costs top issues for manufacturers
Competitiveness and the cost of doing business in Ireland are among the top issues for the manufacturing sector, new data shows. However, the report by business group Ibec reveals that manufacturers are cautiously more optimistic about the business environment compared to last year. 67% of businesses surveyed said attracting and retaining talent was a major […]
Euro zone economy started Q4 on back foot, stoking recession fears – PMI
The downturn in euro zone business activity accelerated last month as demand in the dominant services industry weakened further, a survey showed today, suggesting there is a growing chance of a recession in the 20-country currency union. The economy contracted 0.1% in the third quarter, official data has shown, and today’s final Composite Purchasing Managers’ […]
Just 4% of top companies meet UN climate target guidelines – study
Half of the world’s 2,000 biggest listed companies have set a target to get to net-zero emissions by mid-century, but just a fraction meet tough United Nations guidelines for what constitutes a quality pledge, a report today shows. Net Zero Tracker, an independent data consortium including Oxford University, said corporate targets from Forbes2000 index companies […]
Value of output from agriculture to fall 8% this year, CSO figures show
The value of output from agriculture this year will be down 8% compared to 2022, according to the Central Statistics Office. The CSO says the decrease is mainly due to a drop in milk prices paid to farmers of 28%. The decrease masks estimated increases in prices paid to farmers in some sectors, with pig […]
Corporation tax take drops for third month in a row
The Exchequer recorded a deficit of €900m at the end of October, the latest figures from the Department of Finance show. The Exchequer returns, published this afternoon, also show a drop in corporation tax for the third month in a row. Corporation tax was just over €1bn lower, or 45% less, last month than the […]
Irish Entertainment & Media industry to grow 3.6% a year up to 2027
The Irish entertainment and media industry is to grow by an annual compound rate of 3.6% between now and 2027, a new report from PwC has predicted. That would see it valued at over €6.1 billion, up from €5.1 billion last year. PwC says the growth is largely due to increasing internet access – particularly […]
Shortage of builders a risk to housing construction, warns BPFI
The lack of skilled trades people could affect growth in the economy, according to the latest SME Monitor by Banking and Payments Federation Ireland. Construction firms have reported challenges in hiring suitably trained and skilled staff, with small and medium-sized enterprises particularly affected. A recent report published by Chambers Ireland shows that over 95% of […]
Jobless rate moves up to 4.8% in October – CSO
New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the number of people unemployed rose marginally in October. When adjusted for seasonal factors, the unemployment rate moved up to 4.8% in October from 4.7% in September. This compares to a rate of 4.5% in October last year. Today’s CSO figures show that the seasonally adjusted […]
Service sector growth slows for sixth month in a row – PMI
The rate of expansion in the country’s services sector slowed for the sixth month in a row in October with a survey today showing it at the second-weakest level of the current 32-month upturn. The AIB Global S&P Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 52.6 from 54.5 in September. The index has stayed above the […]
New electric car registrations slow down by 17% in October – SIMI
The latest figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry show that new car registrations for October were down 16.8% to 2,178 when compared when the figure of 2,617 the same time last year. But SIMI said that registrations year to date are up 15.6% to 120,495 from 104,204 the same time last year. […]
Two thirds of adults think Irish banks lack competition
Two thirds of adults in Ireland think the banking sector lacks competition, new research has found. While almost three quarters agree that the process of opening a new bank account is difficult. The survey, carried out among 1,000 adults in Ireland by Censuswide on behalf of fintech Wise, also found that just over half trust […]
New Central Bank campaign to help consumers avoid personal finance scams
The Central Bank has launched an information campaign to help consumers avoid personal finance scams. It said fraudsters are using increasingly sophisticated methods which calls for an increased level of awareness among the public. The scams take different forms including fake loan providers, ‘clones’ of well-known personal finance service providers like banks and fake investments […]
Manufacturing conditions continue to weaken amid fall in new orders
Business conditions in the manufacturing sector continued to weaken in October, new figures show. The latest Purchasing Managers Index from AIB reveals that activity weakened to the greatest extent in three months, driven by a fall in new orders and output. The index dropped to 48.2 from 49.6 in September, and 50.8 in August. Readings […]
Energy suppliers set to cut electricity, gas charges
A number of energy suppliers are set to cut charges for electricity and gas from today. Nearly two million customers will benefit from cuts in unit prices and standing charges. The reductions come ahead of the application of the first Government electricity credit in December. More than 1.1 million Electric Ireland customers will see the […]
Euro zone inflation, growth slow as ECB hikes weigh
Inflation in the euro zone hit a two-year low a month after its economy began contracting, data showed today, illustrating the dual impact of a steady diet of European Central Bank’s interest rate hikes. Euro zone consumer prices rose by just 2.9% in October, their slowest pace since July 2021, a Eurostat flash reading showed, […]