Category: Syndicated

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath has said the Government would like to see people return to the workplace as soon as possible, but for now it is about holding on to the gains already made. Speaking on his way into Cabinet this morning, he said it is too early to say if […]

The number of people claiming temporary Covid-related jobless benefits fell by 8% to 285,000 this week, its lowest level since December last year, new figures from the Department of Social Protection show today. Non-essential retail, hotels and outdoor bars and restaurants have reopened in recent weeks following their closure in late December during a spike […]

The euro zone economy contracted by much less than expected in the first quarter of the year, revised data from the EU’s statistics office showed, with a buildup of inventories and investment offset by reduced consumer spending. Eurostat said gross domestic product in the 19 countries sharing the euro contracted 0.3% quarter-on-quarter for a 1.3% […]

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe at the G7 meeting in London Over the weekend, finance members from the G7 nations backed a move which will could see the introduction of a global minimum corporate tax rate of 15%. The US-backed plan targets tech giants and other multinationals accused of not paying enough tax. However, Minister […]

Publicans have said it is “great to be back” as bars, cafés and restaurants reopened for outdoor service. Bars, restaurants and cafés resumed outdoor service as part of the latest lifting of Covid-19 restrictions. Gyms, swimming pools and leisure centres also reopened for the first time this year as part of the easing of other […]

This time last year, energy prices were just starting to recover from the record lows reached in the weeks before. Worldwide lockdowns at the onset of the pandemic saw international trade practically grinding to a halt. Economists and analysts were predicting the most severe downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Oil prices in […]

The first in-person meeting of the G7 countries since the start of the pandemic takes place in London today. Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe will attend the two-day meeting in his capacity as President of the Eurogroup – the collective term for informal meetings of the finance ministers of the eurozone. He said ministers are […]

Confidence among small business owners has notably improved, according to a new report from the Small Firms Association (SFA). The latest Small Business Sentiment survey shows that over half of SFA members feel that the business environment is improving, compared with just 35% last summer. “Despite the challenges faced by our small business community in […]

Euro zone business activity surged in May as the easing of some coronavirus related restrictions injected life into the bloc’s dominant services industry, a survey showed, echoing data today which showed factories had their best month on record. An acceleration of vaccine programmes across the region and a fall in reported daily cases has allowed […]

Ireland should borrow more to invest in housing and could borrow an additional €4bn to €7bn a year, according to a new analysis by the Economic and Social Research Institute. It comes as the Covid-19 pandemic has forced the suspension of Europe’s fiscal rules on government borrowing and sparked a debate over how much countries […]