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European Parliament President Roberta Metsola will address a joint sitting of the Oireachtas later today. Ms Metsola arrives in Ireland this morning for the start of a two-day visit, during which she will meet President Michael D Higgins, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Tánaiste Micheál Martin. The visit has been organised to mark 50 years of…

The Governing Council of the European Central Bank meets in Frankfurt today where it is widely expected to increase interest rates by a further half a percentage point. Interest rates have been increased four times by the European Central Bank since July last year in an effort to bring inflation down. It is widely expected…

Inflation in the euro area fell to an annual rate of 8.5% in January from 9.2% in December, according to an initial estimate from Eurostat. Energy inflation fell to an annual rate of 17.2% from 25.5% in December. But food inflation increased from 13.8% to 14.1%. Core inflation, which strips out the effect of food…

The Irish Hairdressers Federation has called for the retention of the 9% VAT rate for the sector ahead of its planned rise in the coming weeks. The rate is due to increase to 13.5% on 1 March. The federation said hair salons have seen their costs rise dramatically in the past year and the VAT…

The annual rate of inflation slowed to 7.7% in January, according to an initial estimate by the Central Statistics Office. This compares to an annual rate of 8.2% in December. This measure of inflation is the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), which allows for comparisons across the EU. Eurostat’s estimate of inflation across EU…

The EU’s statistical agency, Eurostat, has estimated that the euro area economy, measured by GDP, grew by 0.1% in the last three months of last year compared to the previous three months. Across 2022, Eurostat estimates that the euro area economy grew by 3.5% of GDP. Ireland’s economy, boosted by the performance of multinationals, grew…

70% of consumers in Ireland are considering an electric vehicle as their next car purchase, a new survey by DoneDeal shows. The figures show that demand on the website for new and used electric vehicles grew by 33% last year, while demand for diesel cars fell 39% during the same period. For the first time…

The Residential Tenancies Board is applying a temporary pause on the charging of late fees in recognition of “the genuine difficulties” experienced by landlords who have been trying to register tenancies. It is also in the process of refunding landlords who were charged late fees between August and November last year, with over 80% of…

Revenue is experiencing a higher volume of calls due to tenants enquiring about the new rent tax credit. The measure, introduced in Budget 2023, allows tenants paying rent on private rental accommodation to claim a €500 rent tax credit. The credit is for 2022 so when a renter claims it, it will result in a…

From cruising around the Mediterranean, to backpacking across South America, international travel is set to return full force this year. ‘Revenge travel’ is a phrase being used to describe the desire to travel that emerged last year, as people took to the skies, seas and roads to make up for the trips they missed due…