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Housing commencements rose by over 31% in Q1

Housing commencements rose by over 31% in Q1 New figures today show that the number of housing commencements rose by 31.6% in the first quarter of the year compared with the same time last year. The latest Housing Market Monitor, published today by Banking & Payments Federation Ireland, showed that 5,8000 housing commencements were registered […]

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Ireland is close to ‘full employment’, new CSO figures show

THE economy is now close to full employment as the jobless rate slumped to just 4.4pc. This is a sharp fall from the height of the recession when it hit almost16pc. The Central Statistics Office’s latest figures show the unemployment rate stood at 4.4pc last month, down from 4.6pc in April. It was 5.6pc in […]

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Irish FDI soars 52pc as UK and Europe stall

IRELAND delivered a Brexit-busting performance in attracting foreign direct investment in 2018, according to a European-wide analysis of FDI trends. The annual EY European Attractiveness Survey found that Ireland won 205 new FDI commitments last year, up 52pc from 2017. That cut against the grain of an overall 4pc decline in FDI growth across Europe […]

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Affordability is key issue for pension system study

Employment minister Regina Doherty has commissioned a key study into the affordability of a new auto enrolment system for pensions that she has insisted is on course to launch in 2022. The new system is aimed at trying to ensure that young workers will have adequate savings by the time they retire. But there is […]

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Euro dips on Italian debt worries and trade tensions

Euro dips on Italian debt worries and trade tensions The euro dipped today as investors nervous about trade tensions bought into the safe-haven dollar and fretted that political risks in Europe remain high. This is despite the fact that pro-Europe parties won a majority of European parliamentary seats. Remarks by two euro zone officials that […]

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Mortgage approvals rise by 9.5% in April – BPFI

Mortgage approvals rise by 9.5% in April – BPFI New figures from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland show that just over 4,100 mortgages were approved in April. This is down slightly month on month, but up 9.5% on an annual basis. The figures show that just over half of those mortgages went to first […]

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New €100 and €200 banknotes in circulation from today

New €100 and €200 banknotes in circulation from today The European Central Bank has said that new €100 and €200 banknotes will start circulating around the euro zone today. The new banknotes use new and innovative security features and are easy to check using the “feel, look and tilt” method. At the top of the […]

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Ibec backs introduction of carbon tax, short-term carbon budgets

Ibec backs introduction of carbon tax, short-term carbon budgets The largest organisation representing businesses here is backing the introduction of a rising carbon tax, as well as short-term carbon budgets that would restrict greenhouse gas emissions in particular sectors. Ibec has also called for changes to the planning system to facilitate a transition to a […]

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Average weekly earnings up by 3.4% in Q1 – CSO

Average weekly earnings up by 3.4% in Q1 – CSO New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that average weekly earnings stood at €769.98 in the first quarter of the year. This marked an increase of 3.4% from the figure of €744.76 the same time last year, preliminary estimates from the CSO’s Earnings and […]

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Residential property values rise by €84m per day – report

The value of residential property in Ireland rose by more than €84 million every day over the past year, according to new data. In total, the value of homes here is now €510 billion, an increase of €31bn or 6% on a year earlier, the report said. “While the bulk of that comes from changes […]

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