ECB’s Lagarde says we haven’t reached inflation peak
Euro zone inflation has not peaked and the risk is that it will turn out even higher than currently expected, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said today. “We do not see the components or the direction that would lead me to believe that we’ve reached peak inflation and that it’s going to decline in […]
Christmas spend set to match last year – Retail Ireland
Irish households are expected to spend the same amount of money this Christmas as they did last, as the impact of the higher cost of living reins in spending. Retail Ireland estimates that each household will spend €978 more in December than they do in every other month. This adds up to around €5.39 billion […]
More small firms to be offered export help through LEOs
An extension by the Government of the mandate of Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) will mean that thousands more small businesses here will be eligible for export grants. Under the move the LEOs will be able to give assistance directly to companies that have over ten employees which are operating in manufacturing and international traded services. […]
Euro zone credit growth remains brisk despite gloomy outlook
Bank lending to euro zone companies held steady, maintaining the sector’s biggest borrowing binge in over a decade, despite rising interest rates and a looming recession, European Central Bank data showed today. Lending to businesses in the 19-country euro area expanded by 8.9% in October, unchanged on September when it rose to its highest rate […]
Firms can register for energy support scheme tomorrow
The Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS), which will assist businesses with their energy costs during the winter months, will open for registrations tomorrow – Saturday 26 November. The €1.2 billion scheme, which will be administered by Revenue, received approval from the European Commission yesterday. Businesses will be able to use the online system to […]
Busy day expected as Black Friday sales get under way
Originally an American construct, Black Friday was ideal for retailers and consumers in the United States to kick off the busy Christmas shopping period. In Ireland, where Christmas retail campaigns now begin just after Halloween, adopting Black Friday as an aid to sales seemed the obvious thing to do and it is now a fixture […]
ECB will increase rates again in December – Makhlouf
The Governor of the Central Bank has said the European Central Bank will increase interest rates at its meeting next month but he had “an open mind” on what scale that should be. Gabriel Makhlouf was speaking at the publication of the Central Bank’s Financial Stability Report today. The Financial Stability Report is published twice […]
Over €93 billion in tax generated by Govt in 2021, up 21% on 2020 revenue
Total tax revenue collected by the Exchequer in 2021 was €93.3 billion, according to the Central Statistics Office. This was €15.9 billion more or 21% higher than in 2020. Today’s figures are contained in a new CSO publication, which is different to the figures published monthly by the Department of Finance. It includes a wider […]
Growth in mortgage approvals driven by sharp increase in switching activity
The number of first time buyers being approved for a mortgage has dropped to its lowest level since 2019, new figures from Banking and Payments Federation Ireland show. The latest BPFI figures also reveal that the number of people switching mortgages continued to rise in October. Last month, a total of 5,349 mortgages were approved. […]
Govt’s budget strategy strikes ‘appropriate balance’ – IFAC
The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has said the Government’s budgetary strategy struck the “appropriate balance between protecting vulnerable households and avoiding inflation”. In its Fiscal Assessment Report published today, the budgetary watchdog also warns that if the Government wants to keep within its own spending rule in next year’s Budget, it will either have to […]
Investments looking ‘slightly weaker’ next year – IDA
IDA Ireland is expected to tell the Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment that it has sight of a healthy pipeline of investments for the first half of next year but that it will be slightly weaker than this year. The agency is due to appear before the committee, along with Technology Ireland, to […]
Government hosts major tech sector conference in Dublin
The Government will host a major conference in Dublin focusing on Ireland’s technology sector. The Digital Ireland Conference will hear from speakers including the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Government ministers as well as executives from tech companies such as Meta, Amazon, Google and Microsoft. The one-day event will explore how Ireland can maximise its digital track […]
Wholesale electricity prices down 52% in October – CSO
Wholesale electricity prices fell sharply last month and are back to levels not seen since August of last year, according to the latest Wholesale Price Index from the Central Statistics Office. The price of electricity charged to industrial users fell by 52% in October. This comes after a drop of 27% in electricity prices in […]
Windfall tax on electricity companies set for Cabinet sign off today
The Government is expected to agree to cap the revenues of electricity generating companies which do not use gas. The Cabinet is also set to sign off on a plan to get firms producing fossil fuels to pay a solidarity contribution. After months of consideration, the Government will today finalise plans to tackle windfall gains […]
ESB to increase charges for use of public electric car charging network by up to 52%
The ESB is increasing charges for the use of its public electric vehicle charging points by up to 52%. The changes will take place from December 20th. It is the second time this year that the company has increased the charges. In a notification sent to customers, the company said it understands that the price […]
Housing starts slow by 31% in October from last year
The number of new housing starts continued to slow last month, according to new figures from the Department of Housing. Commencement notices show 1,841 units began construction in October. That is down on the 2,211 figure for September and down 31% on October last year. The rolling 12-month commencement figure is now 26,608, which is […]
Energy costs the main challenge for manufacturing
There has been a marked deterioration in the outlook for the manufacturing sector over the coming months, a major survey of industry leaders conducted on behalf of Ibec concludes. Energy costs followed by supply chain issues and labour shortages were identified as the main challenges facing the industry. The proportion of survey respondents opting for […]
Gardaí warn shoppers to beware of Black Friday scams
The call comes as it is predicted as much as €26 million will be spent on shopping in upcoming Black Friday sales. New figures also show more than €45 million was stolen through frauds and scams in the second half of last year. Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Detective Chief Superintendent Patrick Lordan, of the […]