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A new report shows that Dublin is the 17th most congested city in the world, with motorists spending an average of eight days and 21 hours sitting in peak traffic a year. The TomTom Traffic Index examines the traffic situation in 416 cities in 57 countries around the world.  The report showed that congestion has…

The volume of retail sales increased by 5.8% on an annual basis in December compared to annual growth of 1.4% in November, the Central Statistics Office said today. Today’s figures show that retail sales volumes rose by 3.6% in December from November, with sales of food, beverages and tobacco; and cars showing the largest increase.…

EU countries including Ireland can restrict or ban high-risk 5G vendors from core parts of their telecoms networks, according to new EU guidelines published today. The move is likely to hurt China’s Huawei but unlikely to appease the United States. The non-binding recommendations, agreed by the bloc’s 28 countries, seek to tackle cyber-security risks at…

New figures from the Central Bank show that the number of homeowners in arrears for more than three months fell to a nine-year-low of 5.9% in the third quarter from 6% at the end of June.  The Central Bank also said the decline in the number of home mortgages in arrears for two or more…

Six euro zone banks have fallen short of the European Central Bank’s capital demands and have been told to shore up their balance sheets or face tighter controls.  The ECB’s annual review of banks comes as many lenders are struggling to make money in an environment of ultra-low interest rates. They are also facing high…

Crude prices dropped below $60 for the first time in nearly three months today, as the death toll from China’s coronavirus rose and more businesses were forced to shut down, fuelling expectations of slowing oil demand. Brent crude was down $1.40 a barrel at $59.29 this afternoon to mark its lowest since late October and…

The European Union, China and 15 other countries agreed today to develop a temporary system for appealing trade dispute rulings after the recent US-provoked collapse of the WTO appeals body.  Ministers from the group published a joint statement announcing a “multi-party interim appeal arrangement”.  The arrangement was reached during a meeting at the World Economic…

Euro zone business activity remained lacklustre at the start of the year, a survey showed today but there were some glimmers of hope for policymakers.  The survey comes a day after the European Central Bank said the manufacturing sector remained a drag on the euro zone economy.  ECB rate-setters did not make any policy change…

The tourism industry needs to focus on costs and competitiveness as the sector faces into choppier waters in the years ahead, according to the head of the national tourism development authority, Fáilte Ireland. Paul Kelly said the industry had to avoid complacency against a backdrop of a softening in demand. “We absolutely need to keep our…

The European Central Bank launched a broad review of its policy today that is likely to see new President Christine Lagarde redefine the ECB’s main goal and how to achieve it.  The European Central Bank has fallen short of its inflation target of just under 2% for years, even after Lagarde’s predecessor, Mario Draghi, launched…