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Ireland has one of the biggest gaps in home ownership between younger and older people in western Europe, a new study has found. The research by the Economic and Social Research Institute found that nearly 80% of people over the age of 40 in Ireland own their own home, but that just a third of…

The June sunshine boosted spending in pubs by 28% compared to the previous month, new figures from AIB show. Spending in hotels jumped by 12%, while restaurant spend increased by 7%. The data shows that spending in pubs and restaurants peaked on 24 June, the day of Dublin Pride. “This information is vital for businesses,…

The Tax Strategy Group paper on income tax has examined the issue of refundable tax credits. This is when those on low incomes do not earn enough to use up all of their available tax credits. A change would allow these taxpayers to receive the value of the unused credits. The Tax Strategy Group is…

A €1 increase in the personal rates of all weekly paid social welfare schemes in October’s budget would cost €69.4 million, according to new estimates. If an additional €1 was also to be paid to dependent adults and children, it would cost €89.4 million. While a €1 increase in the personal rates of all weekly…

Hairdressers and restaurant owners have warned that if the reduced 9% VAT rate increases back to 13.5% again as planned at the end of August, it will put some out of businesses. In February the Government extended the 9% VAT rate further until September 1 as part of measures to assist those in the tourism,…

Fuel prices remained stable in July and are virtually unchanged compared to June, the latest AA fuel prices survey shows. The average petrol price is €1.65 in July, the same as in June, with the average price for diesel rising by a marginal two cents to hit €1.55. “Following the duty increases last month, we…

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that Irish unadjusted exports of goods decreased by €1.2 billion to €16.7 billion in May compared to the same time last year. When seasonally adjusted, exports of goods fell by more than €400m in May from the previous month. Exports of medical and pharmaceutical products decreased by…

Job vacancies fell by 25% in the second quarter of the year, on an annual basis, according to the latest Jobs Index from hiring platform IrishJobs. The report finds that the fall is linked to the post-Covid hiring surge that occurred in 2022. On a quarterly basis job vacancies fell by 4% and are now…

On paper, the job of a Central Bank Governing Council sounds fairly straight forward. Maintain price stability and ensure the stability of the financial system. The guiding principle for the first is to keep the annual rate of consumer price increases to around 2%. Sounds achievable, but that is much easier said than done, as…

A new survey published today shows that despite the global economic challenges, Ireland’s growth forecast has emerged strongly. The latest Accenture/S&P Global Ireland Business Outlook survey show a sustained sense of optimism among Irish private sector companies, buoyed by expected improvements in export performance. The survey reveals that receding energy and raw material price pressures…