News

The price of raw materials for the food industry rose last month, according to the latest Wholesale Price Index from the Central Statistics Office. However, the wholesale price of electricity fell sharply last month while inflation in construction materials continued to moderate. Overall, the rate of price increases for manufactured goods for the domestic market […]

EU leaders have agreed to press ahead with a cap on the wholesale cost of gas as a way to bring down electricity prices during talks in Brussels, which concluded in the early hours of this morning. The price cap will be conditional on safeguards to ensure it does not lead to a reduction in […]

The euro zone’s current account deficit widened in August as soaring energy costs pushed up the bloc’s import bill, data from the European Central Bank showed today. The currency bloc of 19 countries had run a current account surplus for years before Russia’s war in Ukraine. It recorded an adjusted deficit of €26.32 billion in […]

Consumer sentiment improved slightly in October as consumers took some comfort from Government measures introduced in its annual budget to support household spending, a new survey shows today. The Credit Union Consumer Sentiment index climbed to 46.1 in October from 42.1 in September, recovering part of a 11.3-point decline from August. The index was previously […]

Consumer sentiment improved slightly in October as consumers took some comfort from Government measures introduced in its annual budget to support household spending, a new survey shows today. The Credit Union Consumer Sentiment index climbed to 46.1 in October from 42.1 in September, recovering part of a 11.3-point decline from August. The index was previously […]

Euro zone consumer inflation was marginally lower in September than estimated earlier, data showed today. But euro zone inflation still remained at a record high, underlining market expectations of more interest rate rises before the end of the year. The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said consumer prices in the 19 countries sharing the euro […]

The Government is expected to confirm that its new support scheme aimed at assisting businesses with the rising cost of energy will be extended to include professional firms, when it publishes the Finance Bill today. When the €1.25 billion Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS) was announced in last month’s budget, it was originally planned […]

The Central Bank looks set to relax its mortgage lending rules when it publishes the outcome of a review of them later this morning. Currently, most house buyers can only borrow up to 3.5 times their income from lenders. However, following a year-long review of the situation, it is expected that the regulator will announce […]

The Government has agreed that the concrete levy announced in the Budget will be cut to 5% rather than the 10% announced in the Budget last month. It will also now be introduced in September 2023 rather than next April. The charge will not include pre-cast concrete products in an effort to ensure that jobs […]

Oil prices were stable today as the market balanced cuts to OPEC+ production quotas against fears of economic slowdown and lower Chinese fuel demand. Brent crude futures eased by seven cents, or 0.08%, to $91.55 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 12 cents, or 0.14%, at $85.34. WTI had […]