Lagarde hints at April pause amid threat of trade war
Frankfurt lowered borrowing costs by further quarter point (0.25 of a percentage point) on Thursday, reducing its main deposit rate to 2.5 per cent, a move that had been flagged in advance. It was the ECB’s sixth rate cut since last July but market commentators suggested it may be the last easy decision, given the uncertainty now coursing through the global economy. The imminent threat of a trade war with the US also complicates matters. Policymakers also see a growing chance of an April pause before they lower rates again, once there is greater clarity about trade and fiscal policy, sources told Reuters. “This environment requires a deft hand on the monetary policy lever and the preservation of policy optionality,” he said.
Source:The Irish Times
March 06, 2025 20:56 UTC
Ireland’s 11 billionaires saw their wealth grow by a third to €50bn in 2024
Irish billionaire wealth stood at €50.2bn at the end of last year, €13bn up on the previous year, said Oxfam. Photograph: Getty ImagesThe number of Irish billionaires rose from nine to 11 last year and their combined wealth increased by more than a third to just over €50 billion, according to Oxfam Ireland. Oxfam said the State’s billionaires saw their wealth increase by €35.6 million every day in 2024 and that 66 per cent of this wealth stemmed from cronyism, monopolistic sources or inheritance. [ Has Fingal County Council found a solution to our housing crisis?Opens in new window ]In its Takers Not Makers report, Oxfam calculated that billionaire wealth globally surged by $2 trillion in 2024, three times faster than the year before. “We are witnessing the rise of a modern oligarchy, where wealth is used to build and consolidate political power and vice versa.
Source:The Irish Times
January 21, 2025 02:36 UTC
David McWilliams: Say, I think maybe we should limit immigration
I confess, dear reader, that I do not know David McWilliams at all. He goes on:More people demand more services and each new citizen multiplies the pressure on already strained systems. The only thing that has changed is that David McWilliams now feels safe enough to acknowledge those facts in public. That clearly does not apply to public services: As the Government provides more services, more people will be attracted here to use them, so long as the services are relatively better than those in their home countries. It might be a few more years before he feels safe enough to say the next bit out loud.
Source:The Irish Times
January 20, 2025 14:42 UTC
What is the primary problem stopping Munster from success?
Simon Easterby’s 36-man squad contains only five Munster players, the same as Connacht, one more than Ulster, and 18 less than Leinster. Eanna McCarthy during Munster squad training at Thomond Park. Talking to several well-placed people inside Munster rugby the primary problem appears to be the ongoing attempt to ape the Leinster system without having anything like similar resources and competitive standards. So disaffected have the Cork rugby fraternity become that many have ceased travelling to Thomond Park for games. The fervent hope remains that Munster secure a home Round of 16 tie, that somehow they even earn an overdue Thomond Park quarter-final.
Source:The Irish Times
January 18, 2025 19:09 UTC
AIL preview: Trip to Young Munster a stern test for leaders ...
AIL preview: Trip to Young Munster a stern test for leaders St Mary'sToday at 11:30Home side without the services of Evan O'Connell, Ruadhán Quinn and outhalf Tony Butler who are on Munster duty in Northampton
Source:The Irish Times
January 18, 2025 13:12 UTC
Irish rugby needs Munster remaining competitive at the elite...
Irish rugby needs Munster remaining competitive at the elite end of European rugbyToday at 11:30Munster probably have to beat Northampton in Franklin's Gardens to ensure they finish above the Saints and thus ensure themselves a home tie in the Round of 16
Source:The Irish Times
January 18, 2025 13:01 UTC
British Iron Age society centred around powerful women, genetic study led by Irish researchers finds
The excavation of a late Iron Age Durotriges burial at Winterborne Kingston, Dorset. Land was inherited through the female line in Iron Age Britain, and a husband moved to live with the community of his wife. Remarkable evidence that women in British Iron Age society were empowered politically and socially has been unveiled in an international genetic study led by researchers at Trinity College Dublin. They sifted through data from prior genetic surveys of Iron Age Britain and, though sample numbers from other cemeteries were smaller, saw the same pattern emerge repeatedly. Excavation director Dr Miles Russell said beyond archaeology knowledge of Iron Age Britain has come mainly from Greek and Roman writers, who were not always trustworthy.
Source:The Irish Times
January 16, 2025 16:34 UTC
Róisín Ingle: After a serious medical diagnosis, I made a small but profound lifestyle change
READ MORERóisín Ingle: My breast cancer diagnosis Listen | 66:43Things change, people change. Last year, after receiving a serious medical diagnosis the shock propelled me to make a few permanent, self-improving lifestyle changes. And something else: recalling the admiral’s message, I finally started making my bed regularly for the first time in my life. Telling people your ‘news’ when you get a challenging medical diagnosis can be difficult. Telling people your “news” when you get a challenging medical diagnosis can be difficult.
Source:The Irish Times
January 15, 2025 21:30 UTC
Irish military aircraft deployed to monitor Russian ‘shadow fleet’ vessel
The Defence Forces has deployed an aircraft to monitor a vessel from Russia’s so called “shadow fleet” which has appeared in Irish-controlled waters. The military has designated the Metagas Everest tanker, which is also known as the Everest Energy, a “vessel of interest”. On Tuesday morning the Defence Forces deployed an Irish Air Corps maritime patrol aircraft to shadow the vessel as it transited down the west coast. Its primary role is to monitor the Metagas Everest and keep track of its location. It is understood the Defence Forces may deploy a naval vessel to escort the ship through Irish-controlled waters.
Source:The Irish Times
January 15, 2025 08:12 UTC
Nienaber's redesigned Leinster defence key to victory over L...
Nienaber's redesigned Leinster defence key to victory over La Rochelle, says James RyanYesterday at 11:30Province's defence held firm against French side that snatched victory with a last-minute try in the 2022 Champions Cup final
Source:The Irish Times
January 14, 2025 07:58 UTC
15 brilliant short books to get you back in the habit of reading
Here’s the good news: reading books doesn’t just improve our attention spans, it helps reduce stress, improves sleep and reduces cognitive decline. So if you used to read a lot more before the age of social media, here are 15 short books to help you get back in the habit. A short, endlessly debatable, brilliant book everyone should read at least once. And besides all that, how could anyone not want to read a book called Lady Gregory’s Toothbrush? This is what makes The Details so great – we’re reading about someone else’s memories, but they might as well be our own.
Source:The Irish Times
January 12, 2025 03:02 UTC
Devastating fires in wealthy LA areas prove nowhere is immune to climate disasters
Several major fires are enveloping LA, notably one raging in the western Pacific Palisades and another in the eastern mountains above Pasadena. “Record-breaking wildfires are becoming more frequent, and the current California wildfires are especially alarming, occurring outside the usual fire season – May to October,” says Dr Chris Mays, an expert in wildfires, based at University College Cork. Lack of acknowledgment of even the possibility that climate was a critical factor in igniting these catastrophic fires stands out. That is why the climate mantra of “every tenth of a degree of temperature reduction matters” is so often repeated. Its collapse due in the main from climate change, strange as it seems, would led to a much harsher climate for those living in northwestern Europe.
Source:The Irish Times
January 10, 2025 23:48 UTC
Could one US dollar soon be worth more than one euro? What does this mean for Ireland?
Strength of the dollar: A big surge in the dollar in the last quarter of 2024 has left the euro trading at about $1.03. This trend has significant implications for the euro zone and for Ireland, with the US being one of this country’s key markets for exports and investment. READ MORERelatively strong growth prospects in the US contrast with a weakening outlook in the euro zone. “This depreciation reflects a confluence of factors, including relative economic performance, monetary policy expectations and heightened geopolitical and domestic political uncertainties within the euro zone, particularly in Germany and France,” he said. This outlook for dollar strength “will have a significant impact on Ireland and the euro zone”, he said.
Source:The Irish Times
January 10, 2025 09:44 UTC