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Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said that he is hopeful that Chinese authorities will reach a decision on the resumption of Irish beef exports to China “within a matter of months”. Exports to China have been stopped after a case of atypical BSE was detected in a bovine animal in Ireland. Mr Martin, who is on…

Half of the world’s 2,000 biggest listed companies have set a target to get to net-zero emissions by mid-century, but just a fraction meet tough United Nations guidelines for what constitutes a quality pledge, a report today shows. Net Zero Tracker, an independent data consortium including Oxford University, said corporate targets from Forbes2000 index companies…

The downturn in euro zone business activity accelerated last month as demand in the dominant services industry weakened further, a survey showed today, suggesting there is a growing chance of a recession in the 20-country currency union. The economy contracted 0.1% in the third quarter, official data has shown, and today’s final Composite Purchasing Managers’…

Competitiveness and the cost of doing business in Ireland are among the top issues for the manufacturing sector, new data shows. However, the report by business group Ibec reveals that manufacturers are cautiously more optimistic about the business environment compared to last year. 67% of businesses surveyed said attracting and retaining talent was a major…

The Irish entertainment and media industry is to grow by an annual compound rate of 3.6% between now and 2027, a new report from PwC has predicted. That would see it valued at over €6.1 billion, up from €5.1 billion last year. PwC says the growth is largely due to increasing internet access – particularly…

The Exchequer recorded a deficit of €900m at the end of October, the latest figures from the Department of Finance show. The Exchequer returns, published this afternoon, also show a drop in corporation tax for the third month in a row. Corporation tax was just over €1bn lower, or 45% less, last month than the…

The value of output from agriculture this year will be down 8% compared to 2022, according to the Central Statistics Office. The CSO says the decrease is mainly due to a drop in milk prices paid to farmers of 28%. The decrease masks estimated increases in prices paid to farmers in some sectors, with pig…

The rate of expansion in the country’s services sector slowed for the sixth month in a row in October with a survey today showing it at the second-weakest level of the current 32-month upturn. The AIB Global S&P Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 52.6 from 54.5 in September. The index has stayed above the…

New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the number of people unemployed rose marginally in October. When adjusted for seasonal factors, the unemployment rate moved up to 4.8% in October from 4.7% in September. This compares to a rate of 4.5% in October last year. Today’s CSO figures show that the seasonally adjusted…

The lack of skilled trades people could affect growth in the economy, according to the latest SME Monitor by Banking and Payments Federation Ireland. Construction firms have reported challenges in hiring suitably trained and skilled staff, with small and medium-sized enterprises particularly affected. A recent report published by Chambers Ireland shows that over 95% of…