News

European stock bounce counters broader market gloom

World markets struggled for direction on Monday, with renewed strength in the yen, government bonds and gold pointing to heightened caution among investors, but a sharp rebound in European stocks suggesting a pent-up appetite for risk. As the U.S. first quarter earnings season kicks off and G20 finance chiefs gear up for talks in Washington […]

Continue Reading

Number of houses for sale now is lower than during recession

A chronic lack of homes across the country means there are now fewer houses for sale than when the property market collapsed during the darkest days of the recession. And an analysis of recent trends in the residential market by property website Daft.ie shows the total number of properties for sale at any one time […]

Continue Reading

Government to raise €750m in bond auction

THE National Treasury Management Agency is to raise €750m in a bond auction on Thursday April 14. Earlier this month, the agency, which is responsible for borrowing on behalf of the exchequer, borrowed €100m through issuing Ireland’s first-ever 100-year note with an interest rate of just 2.35pc. This is seen as very cheap for a […]

Continue Reading

Ireland to gain flexibility on VAT rates as EC tackles fraud

Ireland could benefit from increased flexibility and discretion around the VAT rates it can apply as the European Commission bids to crack down on VAT fraud. As part of a new action plan for VAT reform the Commission is looking to reboot the existing system, which was implemented as a transitional measure in 1993. The […]

Continue Reading

Irish house prices and GDP to grow 5pc in 2016 – broker

Irish house prices are to increase on average by 5pc this year while the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is also to increase by 5pc, according to Merrion Stockbrokers’ Quarterly Economic Outlook. The report expects an average unemployment rate of 8.3pc in a year where a British exit from the EU (Brexit) remains one of […]

Continue Reading

Central Bank’s board queries its response to Banking Inquiry

Central Bank’s board queries its response to Banking Inquiry The Commission, or board, that oversees the Central Bank of Ireland is made up mainly of outsiders including the Secretary General of the Department of Finance, Derek Moran, and the former head of the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) John Fitzgerald, along with the bank’s […]

Continue Reading

Healthy profits in Irish food and drink

There has been an explosion of Irish companies producing high quality food and drink for Irish and international markets and on this week’s Ready Business show, Brian Purcell spoke to two entrepreneurs who have found success. Gary Lavin, co-founder and Managing Director of VitHit and Brian Lee, founder of Chopped, explained their very different journeys […]

Continue Reading

Dublin Airport to get new €320m runway, supporting 1,200 jobs during construction

Dublin Airport has confirmed this morning that it will proceed with plans for a new parallel runway – with the project estimated to cost as much as €320m. The DAA, which operates Dublin and Cork airports, said the 3,110-metre long runway is expected to be complete by 2020. The project will support 1,200 jobs during […]

Continue Reading

Amazon’s staff in Ireland set for $50m share windfall over two years

Staff at the Irish units of internet giant Amazon are set to reap a total of almost $50m (€44m) worth of share awards this year and in 2017. The move comes as Jeff Bezos, the founder of the world’s most valuable retailer, this week extolled Amazon as “the best place in the world to fail”. […]

Continue Reading

Energy shares help European shares to edge higher

European equities edged higher in early trading on Wednesday after steep declines in the previous session, with energy shares gaining following a bounce back in crude oil prices. The STOXX Europe Oil and Gas index rose 1.2pc, the top sectoral gainer, after crude prices jumped on hopes for an agreement among exporters to freeze output. […]

Continue Reading