New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that exports of goods increased by 10% to almost €91 billion in the first five months of this year, while imports decreased by 10% during the same time. The CSO said that chemicals and related products showed the largest changes in both cases. Exports of these goods…

The Government is to establish a new regulator to oversee the construction of buildings. The Buildings Standards Regulatory Authority will have powers of inspection, enforcement and will have a range of sanctions available to it. Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien will seek Cabinet approval for the establishment of the new regulator. This step was recommended…

Almost three quarters of Irish medium-sized companies are predicting a positive future, the latest International Business Report from Grant Thornton reveals, better than the euro zone average. The Grant Thornton survey, which looks at the attitudes of 10,000 mid-market businesses across 28 countries, shows that 73% of Irish medium-sized companies surveyed are predicting a positive…

A recruitment freeze at the Health Service Executive is to end today after it was introduced last October. Its termination was confirmed yesterday by HSE CEO Bernard Gloster. The embargo was extended in November to include all categories of staff, with the exception of consultants, doctors in training and nurses and midwives who graduated last…

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the economy as measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted last year by more than previously estimated. The revised data shows that GDP shrank by 5.5% in 2023, compared to the original estimate of a 3.2% contraction. The CSO said the fall was driven largely by…

The European Central Bank is expected to leave interest rates unchanged on Thursday, giving the euro zone time to digest last month’s first cut since 2019 as the inflation path remains unpredictable. ECB governors lowered the closely-watched deposit rate from a record 4% to 3.75% at their June meeting, following an unprecedented campaign of monetary…

Small and medium sized businesses lost almost €10m through email-related scams last year. The number of cases reported by SMEs increased almost 25% when compared with 2022. The figures published by FraudSMART, the fraud awareness initiative led by Banking & Payments Federation Ireland, show that companies were conned out of an average of €12,000. The…

Over 100,000 rooftop solar microgenerators have now been connected to Ireland’s electricity network, according to ESB Networks, cumulatively adding over 400MW of clean energy onto the power system. ESB Networks said 20% of solar panel connections were delivered in the past six months, and it is continuing to progress applications at a rate of 750…

Euro zone bond yields edged higher after a sharp drop the previous day on the back of weaker-than-expected US inflation data. German 10-year bond yield, the benchmark for the euro zone bloc, rose 2 basis points (bps) to 2.493%, but was on track to end the week around 4 bps lower after dropping 7 bps…

A new resource to help businesses access a range of government supports called the National Enterprise Hub has been launched today by Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke. The Hub is described as a one-stop shop which brings together information and resources on over 180 supports from 19 Departments and state agencies. It will be staffed…