News

With mortgage approvals for first-time buyers down in December and new housing output in Dublin falling, the outlook for the housing market in 2019 is uncertain. The Irish banks approved 2,908 new mortgages in December 2018 with a total value of €656m. There was an almost 6pc increase in the number of new mortgages approved […]

Three out of four Irish people think automation and robots will cause unemployment, a new survey claims. However, the iReach poll also says that most people believe robots will be good for the economy, estimating that the jobs under threat may exclude their own. The poll of 1,000 people found that just 16pc see “no […]

The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) may take equity stakes in Irish businesses to help them overcome Brexit, and is willing to inject more than €10m into individual companies. Ireland’s sovereign wealth fund said it would use its capital to support companies with UK exposure. Isif director Eugene O’Callaghan said the fund would be more […]

Q: I am meeting a buyer of one of the Irish non-food retailers. It could be a huge breakthrough in scaling-up my product, can you give me any advice? A: It is great to get this opportunity, but you need to be aware that very often these meetings can be a once in a lifetime […]

Bailed-out bank Permanent TSB is changing the rules for those with its older current accounts, in a move that will mean thousands of them will end up paying fees. The new terms and conditions will make it harder to qualify for fee-free banking. Customers who do not qualify for free banking will have to pay […]

Ireland’s corporation tax revenues are under threat as an international reform process kicks off in earnest. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is looking to change the way big technology companies are taxed. It has now said it will consider moving to a system where companies will be taxed, at least in part, […]

THERE is no effective protection for vulnerable consumers from the activities of moneylenders, it was claimed. The Oireachtas Finance Committee was told credit unions are struggling to roll out a scheme to compete with moneylenders because the State-designed scheme is loss-making and bureaucratic for them. Just half of credit unions offer the ‘It Makes Sense […]

The illustrator behind the special €2 coin marking the 100 years since the first sitting of the Dáil is establishing his stamp on the SME market. The Central Bank of Ireland will mint one million of these new €2 coins for general circulation, their tiny decorated canvas featuring the words ‘An Chéad Dáil’, as the […]

LEADING mortgage lender Bank of Ireland has cut some of its short-term rates, but also increasing fixed rates for those who want to lock in for five years or more. The bank has cut both the one and two-year fixed rates by 0.10pc to 2.9pc, effective from January 30. This is the first time in […]

More than 50,000 jobs will be lost amid rising food and clothing prices if the UK continues on the path towards a disorderly Brexit. Doomsday predictions on the impact of a no-deal scenario compiled by the Department of Finance suggest the economic impact will be “particularly severe”. The agriculture sector and small businesses who export […]