The News

Record levels of first-time mortgages approved in Feb

Mortgage approvals for first-time buyers hit a record annualised high in February. Figures from Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) show that in the year to the end of last month, first time buyers were given the green light for mortgages worth a total of almost €9 billion. During the month itself, 3,582 mortgages […]

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Credit unions main lender for personal loans – research

Overall non-performing consumer loans at banks and credit unions remain near recent historical lows, despite a slight increase observed in new early arrears cases. That is according to a new analysis of the consumer credit market by the Central Bank, which also found that consumer debt servicing costs have not increased significantly since the ECB […]

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ECB confident wage growth slowdown on track – Lane

The European Central Bank is increasingly confident that wage growth is slowing back toward more normal levels, potentially opening the door to rate cuts, ECB chief economist Philip Lane said in a podcast published today. The ECB has long pointed to rapid wage growth as a source of concern and said that cutting rates from […]

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Consumer sentiment falls in March amid ongoing caution

Consumer sentiment dropped again this month, new research has found, amid ongoing caution and concern. The Credit Union Consumer Sentiment Index found rising living costs and another increase in fuel prices are weighing on spending plans. Sentiment fell to 69.5 in March, from 70.2 in February, which in turn was lower than January. The report’s […]

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Wholesale electricity prices down almost 47% in past year

There was a decrease in the price of wholesale electricity in February 2024 with prices 15.3% lower than the previous month. The price of electricity was 46.8% lower than in February 2023. This is the lowest price of wholesale electricity since the peak in August 2022. According to the CSO Wholesale Electricity price index, prices […]

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