Over 65% of global firms expect Covid-19 to have a negative impact on revenues in 2020, according to the Grant Thornton International Business Report, which provides insight into the views and expectations of more than 10,000 businesses across 29 economies. It reveals that 40% of businesses anticipate a decline of less than 20% in revenues,…
Tag Archives: Ireland’s economy
The Irish drink and hospitality sector is urging the Government to deliver a VAT reduction in the July stimulus economic plan. The call comes after the UK announced it was cutting VAT (Value Added Tax) on hospitality services from 20% to 5%. At present, there is a 13.5% VAT rate in Ireland for hotel, tourism, food and drink services. The Restaurants…
Hoteliers here are reporting occupancy rates of between 23 and 26% for the summer months, according to figures from the Irish Hotels’ Federation. This is based on confirmed bookings and compares to an average 90% occupancy over the summer months last year. The IHF said that occupancy for September, traditionally a popular time for US…
Consumers in the euro zone returned en masse to shops in May as lockdowns were eased, estimates from the EU statistics agency showed today, signalling a sharp recovery of sales after record drops in March and April. Sales in the 19 countries sharing the euro zone rose by 17.8% in May from April, Eurostat said,…
62% of credit unions have introduced payment holidays as a result of the Covid-19 crisis, a new survey of credit union CEOs and managers across the country shows. The survey also found that the three most in-demand services for credit unions have been the rescheduling of loans, the provision of bespoke services to cocooning members…
There was a partial recovery in the country’s services sector in June, according to AIB in its latest purchasing managers index. The business activity index rose to 39.7 from 23.4 in May, a level consistent with ongoing weak activity in the sector. The index measures activity on a scale of 1 to 100 with the…
The Central Bank has said the economy could shrink this year by up to 14%, while it has also warned that unemployment could average as high as 17% this year. In its latest Quarterly Bulletin, the Central Bank also highlighted the risks to the economy of a no-deal Brexit. The Central Bank has said there is…
Hairdressers, barbers, spas, chiropractors and dentists were among the big beneficiaries of the Phase 3 reopening of the economy yesterday, according to transaction data from Revolut. Pubs and restaurants also got a boost from the restart of business, although to a lesser extent than the other big winners. Excluding online shopping, overall spending yesterday by…
The manufacturing sector returned to growth in June after recovering almost all of the sudden deterioration seen following the coronavirus-related shutdown of most of the economy in March, a survey showed today. The economy here has opened more gradually than much of Europe with large parts of the services sector including hotels, restaurants, hairdressers and…
The Dáil has agreed to spend at least another €2.5 billion on health and business supports due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly confirmed that an additional €2bn was required to pay for health services this year, bringing the department’s revised spending estimate for 2020 to almost €20bn. The estimate has increased by upwards of…