News

Galway medical device firm Vivasure Medical has secured €16.2m in backing from investors as it starts to roll out its first product in Europe. Vivasure, which was co-founded by chief executive Ger Brett, has developed a technology – PerQseal – that enables surgeons to quickly and easily repair puncture holes caused by arteriotomies for catheter-based […]

THERE was an easing back in motor insurance premium rises last month. New figures out this morning from the Central Statistics Office show that motor premiums were up 28pc in the year to August. Although this is a sharp increase, it is down from the 38.6pc annual rise recorded by the CSO in July. The […]

The State has borrowed €1bn for 10 years at an effective interest rate of just a third of one percent. The National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) issued the bond this morning on behalf of the Government. Lenders offered €2.452bn at auction, helping drive down borrowing costs. The bond was sold at an annualised yield of […]

Irish food and drink exports clocked up a sixth consecutive year of growth in 2015, despite the steep decline in dairy prices. Data from Bord Bia shows favourable exchange rates last year plus better beef, seafood and beverage prices helped lift the total value of food sold abroad to €10.8bn – an all-time high. The […]

An open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic post Brexit wouldn’t pose a risk to Britain in terms of immigration, Ireland’s ambassador to London has insisted. Addressing the House of Lords EU Select Committee, Dan Mulhall said any effort to control the free movement of people on the island, or between Britain and Ireland, […]

Brexit is a “disorientating prospect” for Ireland, with serious consequences for the north, European Council President Donald Tusk has said. On a visit to Dublin, Mr Tusk said he and Taoiseach Enda Kenny are working to ensure Ireland doesn’t suffer from a decision it had no hand in. Mr Tusk met with Mr Kenny ahead […]

US President Barack Obama has accused allies of “racing to the bottom” with their taxation policies in the wake of the Apple tax ruling against Ireland. At the G20 summit in China, President Obama said he had raised tax avoidance with the world’s 20 biggest economies. The US President’s comments come just a week after […]

Irish tech firm Movidius has been acquired by Intel for an undisclosed fee, however the company was said to be valued at around €200m early last year. Movidius makes computer vision chips with the ambition of allowing machines to understand their surroundings and adapt to them. The firm has developed chips that powered the first […]

Export orders in Ireland’s services sector dropped to a five-month low as a result of fewer orders from the UK due to the weakening in sterling, a survey has found. And the expansion in new business was the weakest for around two and a half years, according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for […]

EU Commissioner Phil Hogan flatly rejected suggestions that Brussels is trying to exert influence over Ireland’s tax policy through the Euro 19bn Apple tax demand. Commissioner Hogan said he can understand Ireland’s position on an appeal against the Apple tax ruling – but he denied that the Brussels stance was part of any broader EU […]