Archive for December 2020

Chief European Union negotiator Michel Barnier has warned that post-Brexit trade talks were at a “moment of truth” with just hours left to reach an agreement with Britain. “It’s the moment of truth,” Mr Barnier told the European Parliament this morning. “We have very little time remaining, just a few hours to work through these negotiations……

The Covid-19 pandemic has amplified a trend of chronic and worsening shortage of housing and this is already being reflected in house prices and rents. This is according to the Trinity College economist Ronan Lyons who, in his latest report for the property website, daft.ie, says the low volume of properties for sale coming onto…

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he hoped the European Union would “see sense” and agree a post-Brexit trade deal. He said all the bloc needed to do was recognise Britain’s right to sovereignty. Speaking in the House of Commons he said: “Every hope I have (is) that our friends and partners across the…

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…