Looking to buy or rent property in Italy or Ireland? It’s a good idea to consider how tourism impacts these markets. While Italy’s stunning lakes, delicious food, and rich culture attract millions of visitors each year, locals in its major cities like Milan, Rome, Venice, and Naples are facing stiff competition for affordable housing. Airbnb’s … Read more
The latest European Central Bank (ECB) council meeting resulted in a quarter point rise, while some hawkish members were seeking a half point rise. To mollify the hawks, the ECB announced quicker run down of its Government bonds holdings, which could add some upward pressure on long-term interest rates but hopefully not add to jitters … Read more
The European Central Bank (ECB) has increased its interest rates by 0.25%, in a bid to tackle euro zone inflation. The announcement, which was widely anticipated, takes the key ECB rate to 3.75%, resulting in hundreds of euros added to the annual cost of tracker mortgages. This increase follows six previous rate hikes, which have … Read more
The Irish Government is putting pressure on energy companies to lower consumer bills. Green Party leader Eamon Ryan has urged prices to drop even faster amidst growing frustration, and Finance Minister Michael McGrath has called for more transparency from providers on prices. Despite this, the Government is likely to receive pressure from Sinn Féin to … Read more
Sky has launched a new “smart home protection” service called Sky Protect, which offers home insurance and smart home tech in one convenient app. The package includes a suite of smart home tech products such as a video doorbell, indoor camera, leak detectors, motion sensor and contact sensors which can be accessed via the Sky … Read more
According to Oxfam, Irish workers experienced a nearly 4% pay cut in 2022 due to wage growth lagging behind inflation, while CEOs saw their pay packets increase by more than 25%. The average pay package of the 18 top bosses of Ireland’s largest publicly quoted companies rose by 27% to €3.46 million in 2022, whereas … Read more
Finance Minister Michael McGrath has advised the European Central Bank to exhibit caution and consider the impact of raising interest rates on households and firms. He has urged businesses to contribute to the fight against inflation by cutting prices. McGrath shared this sentiment during his meeting with ECB officials in Stockholm, stating that the monetary … Read more
Greedflation is a term that will likely be on the tip of everyone’s tongue in 2023 as concerns continue to mount over businesses causing inflation by increasing their prices under the guise of other inflationary forces. While post-pandemic demand, supply shortages, energy market disruption, and issues with supply chains have played a role in rising … Read more
Major Irish supermarkets including Tesco, Aldi, SuperValu and Lidl have announced a reduction in the price of milk in response to the rising cost of living crisis. Lidl became the first large supermarket to reduce the cost of milk, leading to other supermarkets following suit. The German discounter announced a cut of around 5% on … Read more
According to a flash estimate from the Central Statistics Office, prices in Ireland rose by 6.3% YoY up to April. The latest Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) estimate has reported a lower inflation rate of 7% YoY recorded in March. Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU, will release April’s flash inflation estimates for … Read more