Posts by sean

Mortgage switching activity is growing again as customers try to take advantage of falling European Central Bank rates, according to online broker Doddl.ie. The volume mortgage customers switching lender spiked in 2022, just as the European Central Bank was poised to start raising interest rates. However, as ECB rates rose – and good fixed rate…

Oil prices moved higher today even as investors weighed US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threat, this time on all steel and aluminium imports, which could dampen global economic growth and energy demand. Brent crude futures climbed 51 cents, or 0.7%, to $75.17 a barrel in early trade, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was…

The Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) is setting up an SMS Sender ID Registry to identify legitimate organisations in order to help cut down on text message scams. The SMS Sender ID Registry is designed to help protect the Short Message Service (SMS) as a reliable and trustworthy communications channel. Business names and brands that…

There has been a significant jump in the number of people borrowing money to buy cars and make home improvements, according to latest figures from the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI). It said that during the third quarter of last year more than 17,000 car loans were drawn down – nearly 14% higher than…

There was a further payment of €1.7 billion from Apple’s tax money into the Government’s coffers last month, according to the Department of Finance’s Exchequer Returns. The funds relate to a tax judgement that the US multinational lost at the Court of Justice of the European Union when it argued it was not liable to…

Workers in non-EU multinational companies accounted for the highest average earnings in 2023, according to a new report from the Central Statistics Office. The research shows that median weekly earnings were highest among jobs in businesses owned by non-EU multinationals. The figure stood at €906.74 a week. This was followed by enterprises owned by EU…

Fáilte Ireland drove over 1.2 million referrals from its website and social media channels to the booking engines and websites of Irish tourism businesses last year. The tourism body hopes to grow that number this year, as it unveils plans to drive sustainable tourism development across the country. The chief executive of Fáilte Ireland, Paul…

Ireland will need to build 93,000 homes a year meet demand between now and 2031, according to a report by stockbroker Davy. The estimate is significantly higher than housebuilding targets included in the Coalition’s Programme for Government, which envisages 300,000 new homes being built between 2025 and 2030. Last year there were only 30,000 homes…

The country’s services sector grew at its slowest pace in nine months in January as new export business contracted for the first time in six months and employment fell marginally, a survey showed today. The AIB Global S&P Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 53.4 in January from 57.1 in December, slipping below the long-run…

More than half a million people are missing out on tax refunds, according to estimates from the Revenue Commissioners. It said that around €389m in tax may have been overpaid in 2024 and it is appealing to taxpayers to claim back what they are due. So far this year, more than 440,000 people discovered that…