News

Mortgage approvals jumped in October, both in terms of volume and value. Across all types of borrowers, banks approved a total of 4,262 mortgages in October, up 11.4pc month-on-month. This is a 13.6pc increase in approvals year-on-year, figures from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland show. First-time buyers accounted for the lion’s share of activity, […]

Q. Could you give me a few words of wisdom on improving the profitability of a manufacturing business? A. Sales are vanity, profit is sanity. It is good to see that you are focused on the bottom line. In most manufacturing businesses wages tends to be the biggest cost. It is not so much about […]

Bumper corporation tax receipts pushed the overall tax–take in November to €631m ahead of target. Department of Finance show that taxation receipts for the month of November were €938m higher than in the same month last year, boosted by very strong corporation tax receipts.  November is the month when must businesses pay their tax, making […]

Last week in this diary I discussed our remote-working strategy. By adopting a company culture of remote and flexible work, we gain access to much larger pool of global talent. The trade-off is that you have to work harder to ensure team cohesion. Making this work is not just about fancy tools like Slack, it’s […]

Last week in this diary I discussed our remote-working strategy. By adopting a company culture of remote and flexible work, we gain access to much larger pool of global talent. The trade-off is that you have to work harder to ensure team cohesion. Making this work is not just about fancy tools like Slack, it’s […]

Query: I left my former employer two years ago after working there for almost 20 years. I have an entitlement to a pension from that company’s defined benefit (DB) pension scheme. I have received a letter from my former employer, offering me an ‘enhanced transfer value’. Should I transfer my benefit entitlement out of that […]

Mortgage approvals jumped in October, both in terms of volume and value. Across all types of borrowers, banks approved a total of 4,262 mortgages in October, up 11.4pc month-on-month. This is a 13.6pc increase in approvals year-on-year, figures from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland show. First-time buyers accounted for the lion’s share of activity, […]

Former UK prime minister Tony Blair said any second Brexit referendum should be a choice between remain and a hard Brexit. Speaking on ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Monday, the former Labour leader said a second people’s vote was the only way to settle the deadlock in Parliament. Mr Blair, who is in favour of […]

A selection of ‘food zones’ are the big winners from the allocation of €30m in new funding for regional employers. Business Minister Heather Humphreys will today reveal the recipients of the Regional Enterprise Development Fund. It provides money to enterprises involved in food, pharma, design, marine, engineering, bio economy and disruptive technologies. Among those getting […]

European shares climbed modestly at the end of a volatile week, with banks and technology stocks, which have been hit hard by growth worries, leading the way, while Italian stocks rallied as bond yields fell. The pan-European STOXX 600 managed a 0.2pc gain by 0830 GMT, while Italy’s FTSE MIB outperformed with a 0.8pc rise. […]