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 […]
Lower-income households experiencing greater inflation
Inflation continues to be greater for households on lower incomes, rural households and those headed by people over 65. This is largely because these households spend a greater proportion of their incomes on utilities, fuels and transport costs. It is these areas where prices have gone up the most. According to the latest Estimated Inflation […]
Revenue warns of potential extra costs when buying goods online
Revenue has warned shoppers to check whether the advertised price of online goods includes all tax and duty costs due before deciding to buy. It said where the price of the goods advertised seems attractively low, this may be because tax and duty costs are not reflected in the price advertised. Additional charges, including VAT […]
Wind was biggest single electricity source in October
High winds for weeks meant 45% of the country’s electricity last month came from wind, setting a new record. This meant wind was the biggest single contributor to Ireland’s power needs during the month. However, the unpredictable nature of the source was exposed with wind generating as much as three quarters of our needs on […]
Euro zone inflation revised marginally lower, but still at record high
Eurostat confirmed that inflation in the euro zone rose by 1.5% on a monthly basis to give a 10.6% annual increase This marked a revision from the 10.7% annual reading reported previously. Eurostat confirmed that inflation in the euro zone rose by 1.5% on a monthly basis to give a 10.6% annual increase This marked […]
Toll charges rising to ‘maximum level’ from January
Toll charges on most toll roads around the country are to increase to their “maximum level” from 1 January 2023. The price hikes are linked to the current rate of inflation, which has increased by 8.6% between August 2021 and August 2022. The tolls cannot be increased beyond this rate. There are 10 toll roads […]
Property price growth slows to 10.8% in September – CSO
New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that annual property price growth slowed to a 14-month low in September. The CSO said that residential property prices eased to 10.8% in September from 11.9% in August and down from a 2022 peak of 15.1% in February. Prices in Dublin rose by 9.4% and prices outside […]