Archive for January 2020

First time buyer activity continued to drive the mortgage market in the final three months of last year, new figures from the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland show. A total of 12,259 mortgages to the value of almost €2.77 billion were drawn down in the three months from October to December. This represented an increase…

European stock markets rebounded on Tuesday, having lost ground in recent sessions due to fears of the impact of China’s coronavirus outbreak. Banks and luxury goods companies led the recovery, while leisure and airline stocks also clawed back losses as investors took the view that the right steps were being taken to contain the illness.…

The construction sector is under Celtic Tiger levels of pressure and is in danger of overheating, according to a new report from construction consultants Mitchell McDermott. The report says 30,000 additional construction workers are required if housing targets are to be met. It says construction output grew by 12% last year, but the number of workers only…

A new report shows that Dublin is the 17th most congested city in the world, with motorists spending an average of eight days and 21 hours sitting in peak traffic a year. The TomTom Traffic Index examines the traffic situation in 416 cities in 57 countries around the world.  The report showed that congestion has…

The volume of retail sales increased by 5.8% on an annual basis in December compared to annual growth of 1.4% in November, the Central Statistics Office said today. Today’s figures show that retail sales volumes rose by 3.6% in December from November, with sales of food, beverages and tobacco; and cars showing the largest increase.…

EU countries including Ireland can restrict or ban high-risk 5G vendors from core parts of their telecoms networks, according to new EU guidelines published today. The move is likely to hurt China’s Huawei but unlikely to appease the United States. The non-binding recommendations, agreed by the bloc’s 28 countries, seek to tackle cyber-security risks at…

New figures from the Central Bank show that the number of homeowners in arrears for more than three months fell to a nine-year-low of 5.9% in the third quarter from 6% at the end of June.  The Central Bank also said the decline in the number of home mortgages in arrears for two or more…

Six euro zone banks have fallen short of the European Central Bank’s capital demands and have been told to shore up their balance sheets or face tighter controls.  The ECB’s annual review of banks comes as many lenders are struggling to make money in an environment of ultra-low interest rates. They are also facing high…

Crude prices dropped below $60 for the first time in nearly three months today, as the death toll from China’s coronavirus rose and more businesses were forced to shut down, fuelling expectations of slowing oil demand. Brent crude was down $1.40 a barrel at $59.29 this afternoon to mark its lowest since late October and…

The European Union, China and 15 other countries agreed today to develop a temporary system for appealing trade dispute rulings after the recent US-provoked collapse of the WTO appeals body.  Ministers from the group published a joint statement announcing a “multi-party interim appeal arrangement”.  The arrangement was reached during a meeting at the World Economic…