Author: Practicenet

Ireland ‘third-safest country’ in the world for business

Country ranks highly in terms of supply chain resilience in study of 130 nations Ireland has been ranked as the third safest country in the world in which to do business, according to a new survey by international risk management and insurance company FM Global. The study finds that Ireland is considerably more insulated from […]

Continue Reading

German economy more than doubles growth pace in first quarter

Germany more than doubled its economic growth rate in the first quarter of 2016 as higher state and household spending, as well as rising investment on construction and capital goods offset a drag from foreign trade, preliminary data showed on Friday. The economy grew by 0.7pc on the quarter between January and March after it […]

Continue Reading

German economy more than doubles growth pace in first quarter

Germany more than doubled its economic growth rate in the first quarter of 2016 as higher state and household spending, as well as rising investment on construction and capital goods offset a drag from foreign trade, preliminary data showed on Friday. The economy grew by 0.7pc on the quarter between January and March after it […]

Continue Reading

Consumer confidence on rise with a quarter of households planning to buy a car – survey

One in three households considers it a good time to purchase big ticket items and a quarter intend to purchase a car in the next year, a survey by Bank of Ireland has found. Almost four in ten consumers expect their household financial situation to improve in the next year, although just under half expect […]

Continue Reading

Boost for farmers as fertiliser prices fall

FARMERS have seen some savings in their pockets with the price of fertiliser falling in recent weeks. Prices of fertiliser have dropped as low as €240 to €290 for a large bag of CAN in North Leinster, down from €306 to €355 during May last year. However, most retailers are quoting €250 up to €290 […]

Continue Reading

Government raises €750m in bond auction

The Government has raised €750m in in a bond auction. The yield on the 0.8pc 2022 treasury bonds was 0.157pc with bid/cover of 2.6. It was conducted by the National Treasury Management agency and was the first auction since the formation of the news government. Last month the NTMA auctioned off another €750m worth of […]

Continue Reading

KBC Bank Ireland doubles profit in first quarter

KBC Bank Ireland has more than doubled its profit in the first quarter of its financial year, rising to €34.2 from €16.2m when compared with the same period last year. In the three month period to the end of March, the bank added 16,800 with current accounts continuing to drive new customer acquisitions. The firm […]

Continue Reading

Formation of government has not ended political uncertainty – ratings agency Fitch

The formation of a government has not brought an end to political uncertainty, ratings agency Fitch has warned. Although uncertainty has been reduced, it hasn’t been eliminated because it isn’t clear how much of its legislative programme the minority government will be able to implement, the ratings giant said. The agency also warned that possible […]

Continue Reading

Virgin Media’s Irish TV customers take flight amid strong global results

Virgin Media has suffered a 14pc fall in its Irish TV customer base over the last year, new accounts show. The operator, which rebranded from UPC last year, lost 53,900 television customers in the last 12 months as stiff competition from Sky, Eir and Saorview continue to bite. Virgin also saw a slight fall in […]

Continue Reading

Revealed: Black market trading cost economy €2.5bn last year

Black market trading is estimated to have cost the economy close to €2.5bn last year. Almost €800m of that is a direct loss to the Exchequer, according to a report by consultants Grant Thornton. The study focused on alcohol, tobacco, fuel, pharmaceuticals, digital piracy and other product counterfeiting. The report said there was little sign […]

Continue Reading