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OPEC+ might have to raise oil production to avoid market overheating, OPEC+ member Kazakhstan said, as the group of oil producers meets amid US pressure to add barrels to the market while most members have already exhausted their output potential. “We have always said that the preferred price corridor is $60-80 per barrel. Today the…

Bank of Ireland has reported an underlying profit before tax of €419 million for the first six months of 2022. It was down on the €465 million reported at the same time last year. Net profit of €279 million was down from €341 million for the same period last year. The bank recorded an impairment…

A new minimum pay rate of €12.50 per hour is to be introduced for workers in the security industry. The new pay scale is scheduled to come into effect on August 29th and will be followed by another increase to €12.90 per hour from February 1st next year. The minimum rate of pay has been…

Rising inflation is continuing to hit Ireland’s manufacturing sector, according to a new survey. The AIB manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ index shows that output dropped for the second month running in July. It states that demand conditions had weakened both domestically and abroad, in part due to rising costs. “Inflationary pressures remain pronounced, with prices rising…

Half of Irish shoppers are overspending, shopping more frequently or buying what they don’t need – just to qualify for supermarket money-off vouchers. That’s according to a new study by Coyne Research, commissioned on behalf of Aldi Ireland. It found that consumers spent on average €9 extra, with three in ten claiming the additional spend…

Australia’s central bank has today raised interest rates for a fourth month in a row, but tempered guidance on further hikes as it forecast faster inflation but also a slowdown in the economy. Wrapping up its August policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted its cash rate by 50 basis points to 1.85%.…

There were also major cuts in overall claims costs as a result of a reduction of 18% in the number of personal injuries claims made to PIAB last year. This follows a reduction in 2020 of 16% and an overall drop in claims volumes in the last two years of 31% The decreased volume in…

The Government is to make changes to the employment permits system amid growing demand for workers from outside the European Economic Area. A new law will be published in the autumn, which is designed to make the permits system more flexible and better able to respond to evolving labour market needs. A seasonal employment permit…

Bord Gáis Energy saw its adjusted operating profits rise by 74% in the first half of the year, as its parent company Centrica also reported a massive jump in earnings. The Irish utility had an adjusted profit of £33m (€39.5m) in the first six months of 2022, compared to a profit of £19m (€22.7m) in…

The construction of residential buildings picked up quite substantially in the first half of the year, according to GeoDirectory in its latest Residential Buildings Report. 22,390 residential buildings were under construction in June which represents an increase of over 18% on the same time last year. Construction was constrained in the first half of 2021…