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Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said Ireland is a “technology-centred economy” with a need for further data centres. He was responding to reports of concern over a surge in energy use by data centres. Yesterday, the CSO said data centres increased their power consumption by 31% and now account for 18% of electricity used. This industry…

Wind generated just 23% of Ireland’s electricity in May, with calm conditions leading to a 38% drop in generation when compared to April. New figures from Gas Networks Ireland show that gas generated 57% of Ireland’s electricity last month, up 21% month-on-month. Gas has been the highest contributor to Ireland’s electricity generating system for the…

Speaking at a Banking Payments Federation Ireland conference, Micheal McGrath said genuine people should not be allowed to fall into arrears due to higher interest rates. Speaking at a Banking Payments Federation Ireland conference, Micheal McGrath said genuine people should not be allowed to fall into arrears due to higher interest rates. By Adam Maguire…

The Government is being urged to use October’s Budget to tackle energy poverty and break Ireland’s dependence on fossil fuels for home heating. A cross-section of social, environmental and voluntary organisations issued the call ahead of the National Economic Dialogue, which takes place in Dublin Castle today. The conference will see Government leaders, charities, trade…

Construction activity contracted again in May, but only slightly, as demand improved. The latest BNP Paribas Real Estate (BNPRE) Ireland Construction index was still below the crucial 50 mark at 49.4, the eight consecutive month that activity fell. But there were further signs of recovery, with new orders, employment and buying activity improving on previous…

The annual rate of inflation slowed to 6.6% in May, compared to 7.2% in April, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show today. The rate of goods inflation has slowed to 2.9% while the price of services has risen to 9.5%. The pace of inflation across the economy is gradually slowing down but prices…

Today on World Accreditation Day, the Irish National Accreditation Board (INAB) is calling on businesses to employ accredited services to test, inspect, verify or certify their products or services. When manufacturing a product, a business will hire a company to make sure their products or services meet the specified requirements set out in legislation or…

The Central Bank has published data showing customers with mortgages at credit-servicing firms face higher interest rates. The analysis shows that 90% of loans held by the so-called ‘non-bank’ sector that administers mortgages bought up by investment funds, have an interest rate of 6.5% or less. 20% of these loans had interest rates of 6%…

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the Households Saving Rate fell to 14% in the first three months of 2023, down from 24% at the end of 2022. The CSO said the lower rate of saving in the first three months of the year marked a departure from the high rate that…

The National Treasury Management Agency said it sold €1.25 billion of bonds maturing in 2033 and 2050 at auction today at yields of 2.84% and 3.359%. With the completion of today’s auction, the NTMA has issued €6 billion of benchmark bonds so far this year. The NTMA has said it aims to raise between €7…