Despite the impacts of Covid-19 and the uncertainty surrounding the prospects for a free trade agreement between the EU and the UK in the coming weeks, it appears that workers in the private sector can look forward to pay rises in excess of 2% next year. This is according to the latest Willis Towers Watson…

The Economic and Social Research Institute has forecast that the economy will end up growing this year by 3.4%, despite record unemployment. In its latest Quarterly Economic Commentary, the think-tank said exports by pharmaceutical and IT companies have remained strong but the shock of Covid-19 will impact the domestic economy for some time to come. The…

An exit by Ulster Bank from Ireland could lead to a concerning reduction in competition in the SME lending market, the deputy governor of the Central Bank has said. Addressing the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and Taoiseach, Ed Sibley said that, for reasons of confidentiality, he could not comment on the…

Consumer sentiment rose strongly for the second month in a row to reach its highest level since the Covid-19 pandemic took hold after the reopening of large parts of the economy at the start of December, a survey found today.  The KBC Bank Ireland consumer sentiment index rose to 74.6 in December from 65.5 in…

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney, has said neither of two remaining obstacles in relation to Brexit are easy to resolve. He said while he is hopeful that it can result in a successful agreement, “we have to be ready for both outcomes”. Speaking on RTÉ’s News at One, Mr Coveney said “because the…

The resilience of the Irish economy will mean it will grow by 0.8% this year, the country’s largest business group has forecast in its latest Quarterly Economic Outlook. 2021 will still bring challenges, Ibec states, but nonetheless it expects Gross Domestic Product to power back and grow by 5.3%. Much of the recovery will be…

The European Union will need to move in negotiations but it is in the interests of both Britain and the EU to get a trade deal, according to the UK finance ministry. “The fundamentals remain the same, it is in both sides’ interest to have a deal,” Steve Barclay, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, told…

Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Alphabet unit Google may have to change their business practices in Europe or face hefty fines between 6-10% under new draft EU rules to be announced today. The rules are the most serious attempt to rein in the power of the US tech giants which control troves of data and online…

Overall, 28,000 new houses will be required to be built each year over much of the next two decades if the country’s housing needs are to keep step with population growth, according to new research from the Economic and Social Research Institute. The ESRI also found that up to 33,000 new homes will be required…

House prices have increased by 3.5% in the last year, according to a report by the property website Daft.ie. So far this year more than 630 properties were sold that were worth €1m or more.  More money is being spent on homes with Daft.ie assessing the value of all residential property in Ireland now stands…