Author: splash

Mortgage rates in Ireland still remain elevated compared to the country’s euro zone neighbours, new Central Bank figures show. Ireland had the third highest mortgage interest rates across the euro area in September, the Central Bank said, with only Greece and Latvia higher.  The average interest rate on new mortgages agreed here stood at 2.78% […]

Talks between the UK and the European Union on a post-Brexit trade deal are likely to run into next week, missing a mid-November deadline, Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has said. When asked when a deal was likely, he said: “I think it’s unlikely this week. Hopefully I’ll be proven wrong”. He made the comments in […]

The Irish food and drink industry has warned of serious economic disruption even if EU and UK negotiators reach agreement on a free trade deal in the coming days. Food Drink Ireland, part of IBEC, says the sector is the most exposed part of the most exposed country to Brexit, which is now just 50 […]

The Covid-19 pandemic will cause the Irish food service market to contract in size by nearly half this year, new estimates from Bord Bia have found. However, the report predicts that the sector will experience a recovery next year, even in the worst case scenario. The food service market includes food and drink consumed and prepared […]

Researchers at the Economic and Social Research Institute have asserted that Ireland’s tax policy “could be one of the key contributing factors to the country’s strong economic performance”. In a paper titled ‘Effective Tax Rates in Ireland’ the authors show Irish tax rates on labour (income tax) have been consistently lower than the EU average. The same […]

Ulster Bank is urging online shoppers to be on the lookout for more than just bargains this Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with criminals increasingly targeting unsuspecting shoppers on some of the busiest e-commerce days of the year.  Ulster Bank’s annual fraud survey, which questioned 927 online shoppers, shows an increased awareness when it comes […]

The Minister for Foreign Affairs said a Joe Biden presidency may make some difference to Brexit negotiations, adding that the US president-elect is a “real friend to Ireland” and supporter of the Good Friday Agreement.  Simon Coveney said the US and UK are close allies but the fact that Mr Biden will be the next US president […]

More than a third of insurance firms are worried about the cost of claims, particularly from Covid-19, while 60 per cent fear they will see a reduction in premium volumes as a result of the economic fallout from the crisis. That is according to a PwC/Insurance Ireland CEO survey. It found that 35 per cent […]

The European Union will impose tariffs on American goods worth $4bn starting today in a tit-for-tat escalation over illegal aid to aircraft manufacturers Boeing and Airbus. EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis yesterday expressed a preference to negotiate a settlement, saying the bloc would drop its duties if the US withdrew the tariffs it imposed on […]

The gap between the highest and lowest mortgage rates has stretched to a five-year record. It comes after the launch of a mortgage rate of less than 2pc which has driven a surge in switching activity. The new rate is the lowest in this market for 12 years. The gap in rates means the difference […]