Category: Syndicated

Most Irish food SMEs expect revenue growth this year

Most small and medium sized businesses in the food sector expect their revenues to increase in the year ahead, according to new research by Love Irish Food and PwC. The 2021 Irish SME Food Barometer found that 75% of companies in the sector are optimistic about their growth prospects. The findings suggest that there is […]

Continue Reading

‘No abrupt end’ to Covid financial supports – McGrath

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has said there will be “no abrupt end” to the Covid financial supports. Over the coming weeks, Michael McGrath said the Government will finalise its approach for those supports beyond the end of June, when they are due to finish. The Minister said the Government will be very […]

Continue Reading

Business confidence jumps to higher levels than before pandemic – BoI

Business confidence jumped in April to higher levels than seen even before the Covid-19 pandemic, as they eye the rollout of vaccines and some easing of restrictions, according to Bank of Ireland. The latest Bank of Ireland business pulse index rose by 14.3 points from March to 88.9 for the current month, according to a […]

Continue Reading

Retail and wholesale start-ups jump by 88% in Q1 – CRIFVision-Net

The first quarter of 2021 saw a significant increase in “necessity-led entrepreneurship” across the retail and wholesale sectors, the latest figures from credit risk analyst CRIFVision-Net show. Today’s figures reveal an 88% year-on-year increase in retail trade and wholesale start-ups. CRIFVision-Net said this suggested that the continued Covid-19 public health restrictions and resulting job losses […]

Continue Reading

Health insurance uptake on the rise, but so are prices

Like many economic predictions when it comes to the pandemic, forecasts around the health insurance market have turned out to be wide of the mark. Given the impact Covid-19 has had on employment and incomes, it was reasonable to assume that health insurance would be high on the list of products that households would look […]

Continue Reading

Consumer sentiment improves to 13-month high in April

Consumer sentiment climbed slightly to hit its highest in April since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, a survey showed today, but consumers expressed caution about the long-term economic outlook. The KBC Bank consumer sentiment index rose for a third month in a row to 77.9 in April from 77.1 in March. This was still […]

Continue Reading

Consumer sentiment improves to 13-month high in April

Consumer sentiment climbed slightly to hit its highest in April since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, a survey showed today, but consumers expressed caution about the long-term economic outlook. The KBC Bank consumer sentiment index rose for a third month in a row to 77.9 in April from 77.1 in March. This was still […]

Continue Reading

ECB sticks with euro zone stimulus plans

The European Central Bank left policy unchanged as expected today, keeping copious stimulus flowing even as it saw reasons to expect a firm rebound of the euro area economy this year. The ECB is keeping borrowing costs pinned near record lows via massive bond purchases to see the 19-country currency bloc through a scarring recession […]

Continue Reading

4 in 10 workers have no occupational pension – Age Action

40% of workers aged between 20 and 69 have no occupational pension coverage other than the state pension, according to Age Action. Addressing a Pensions Commission webinar earlier today, Age Action Senior Public Affairs and Policy Specialist Dr Nat O’Connor noted that in certain sectors of the economy, a majority of employers do not offer […]

Continue Reading

Donohoe says Ireland committed to global tax deal – but it must work for small countries

Ireland is committed to reaching an agreement to overhaul global corporate tax, but it must be one that works for small countries and accommodates healthy and fair tax competition, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said today. Momentum has been building towards reaching a consensus on how to better tax multinational companies. But Paschal Donohoe said the […]

Continue Reading