News

The number of people claiming the Pandemic Unemployment Payment has dipped below 400,000 for the first time this year, according to the latest figures from the Department of Social Protection. 385,211 recipients will receive the payment this week, at a cost of €114.1 million. The total cost of the scheme launched on 16 March 2020…

€5m is to be made available to help businesses upgrade their websites to boost opportunities in online retail. The latest round of the Covid-19 Online Retail Scheme is open to applications from today. The scheme, which will be administered by Enterprise Ireland, is targeted at Irish-based retailers with a physical store and a pre-existing online…

Conditions in manufacturing improved vastly in the month of April bringing AIB’s monthly measure of activity in the sector to a record high. The Purchasing Managers’ Index – or PMI – is a composite, single-figure indicator of manufacturing performance derived from indicators for new orders, output, employment, suppliers’ delivery times and stocks of purchases. Activity…

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath has said Covid-related supports for businesses and individuals beyond June will be laid out by Government by the end of this month. He said the Government will give careful consideration to Covid-19 supports provided, and reiterated there will not be any cliff edge for people or their…

Business groups have largely welcomed the latest Government plan for the reopening of the economy, which will see sectors reopen on a phased basis from 10 May. On that date, hairdressers will reopen. The Irish Hairdressers Federation welcomed the news, saying their focus is now on reopening the sector safely and responsibly on 10 May.…

Is this really the beginning of the end of the economic misery that’s been heaped upon the country for the past 13 months?
 That’s the question that thousands of business owners and their staff across the country are asking themselves, following the latest reopening plan announcement. For pubs that haven’t served a pint in 15…

A new report from the Central Bank indicates that lending by banks has begun to recover this year, particularly in the mortgage market. However, it warns that unexpected bad debts may stifle the supply of credit when Government supports are phased out. The report, which is published as part of the bank’s Economic Letter series,…

Certainty on financial supports and the reopening strategy for businesses over the coming months are required from today’s Cabinet meeting on Covid-19 restrictions, Chambers Ireland has said. The organisation, which represents 41 individual chambers of commerce around the country, said timelines for the reopening need to contain targets and be realistic. “First and foremost, the…

Retail sales volumes were 8.5% higher in March than in the same month last year, driven by growth in homewares and car sales, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show today. Sales volumes were down 1.9% compared to February, the CSO said. This followed a monthly decline of 20.7% in January and an increase…

Almost half of businesses surveyed by the Central Statistics Office had employees either on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) or the Wage Subsidy Scheme (WSS) in January of this year. 46.6% of almost 243,000 firms across a range of sectors were in receipt of some form of support. This compares to a peak of 57%…