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The National Treasury Management Agency raised €6 billion in a sale of a 10 year bond today. The funds were raised at a yield of 0.285% following strong demand from investors. The issue drew almost €70 billion of demand, more than twice the previous record for an Irish sovereign bond. The sale saw the NTMA…

Construction activity continued to fall sharply in May but at a softer pace than in April, the latest Ulster Bank Construction PMI survey shows today. The Purchasing Managers’ Index, which tracks changes in total construction activity, posted a reading of 19.9 in May. This was up from 4.5 in April as the construction sector opened up…

Thousands more businesses across the country will begin opening their doors this morning for the first time in nearly three months, as the second phase of the Government’s plan to get the economy moving again gets under way. All retailers with their own on-street entrances can resume in-person trade, but opening times and how they…

The Commission for Regulation of Utilities has warned businesses that they could miss out on energy savings by not talking to their suppliers to avail of the temporary Supply Suspension Scheme for companies impacted by Covid-19 restrictions.  The scheme was introduced in May to alleviate the pressures on SMEs by ensuring that they will have…

Unemployment, adjusted to account for those on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment, fell slightly in May to 26.1%. This compares to 28.2% in April. The percentage of younger people unemployed continues to be high with 51% of those 15-24 out of work compared to 22.5% of those aged over 25. The Central Statistics Office reports that…

The level of mortgage approvals fell substantially in April, according to the latest figures from the Banking and Payments Federation. The figures are reflective of the fact that the property market has all but stalled in recent months as the Covid-related shutdown of the economy took effect. Just 2,200 mortgages were approved in April with…

Exchequer figures for May show an overall deficit in the public finances of €6.143bn. This compares with a deficit of €63m in the same month last year. An unexpected increase in the amount of corporation tax collected offset sharp declines across all other tax heads. Spending was up ahead of where it was planned to…

The number of people claiming the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment has fallen to 543,200 – a drop of 36,200 in the last week, according to the latest figures from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.  Of  those receiving the payment today, 28,400 have notified the Department that they are returning to work. 21,100…

Those looking to buy a house remain confident about their ability to do so, despite the interruption to the market as a result of Covid-19. That’s according to a new survey by property website MyHome.ie. It found that 68% of prospective buyers are still planning on purchasing a new property in the next year. Six…

Irish manufacturing activity suffered a further severe deterioration last month, according to figures published today. The AIB Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for May shows that although many indicators recovered some of the ground lost in April’s collapse, they still signalled rapid falls. The PMI rose from April’s 11-year low of 36.0 to 39.2 in…