IRELAND BUSINESS: FINFACTS IRISH FINANCE & BUSINESS PORTAL - mortgage Ireland, protection, life insurance, Financial Services, Investment, loans, Irish jobs Ireland, Dublin mortgages, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Share, Stock prices,

Share Prices	Property Investment
Key Weekly Statistics	Irish House Prices/Market
Historical Stock Returns	Stock Indices/Markets
Warren Buffett's Annual Letter to Shareholders 2008: Compounded Annual Gain - - 1965-2007: 21.1%
Merrill Lynch’s Survey of Fund Managers July: European inflation fears ease as recession risks loom larger; Most stock market analyst earnings estimates in Europe “are in fantasy land”
Research suggests hedge fund managers may cherry pick flattering prices in valuing securities that don't actively trade to boost performance
Barclays Equity/Gilts Study 2007 - Climate Change to spark economy boosting Energy Revolution
Irish Financial Regulator Survey: Irish broker charges for investing €35,000 in a company listed on the US stock exchange range from €187 to €545
Irish investors were the second biggest net investors in commercial property across Europe in 2007

Main Stocks/Investment Centre Page

Mortgage Rates	Savings Rates
First Time Buyers	Pensions 2008
Mortgage Costs	Life Insurance
Health Insurance	Financial Directory
Irish Financial Regulator Consumer Reports	Irish Credit Bureau - credit record held for 5 years
Irish Multi-Trip Travel Insurance Rates 2008

Main Personal Finance Page

Irish Tax 2008 and 2007	Irish Revenue Online
OECD countries' tax burdens back up to 2000 historic highs	EU Tax revenue increases for the first time since 1999, to 40.9% of GDP
IFSC - Dublin's Offshore Financial Services Centre	Patent Tax Exemption - Bonanza for Irl & US Firms
Taxation in EU: Rise in overall tax burden in the EU27 to 39.6% of GDP in 2005: Stamp duty and capital taxes have pushed Irish burden up since 2001
Across OECD countries share of taxes and social security payments as proportion of labour costs fell slightly at most earnings levels in 2000-2006 - 2008 report
KPMG Global Corporate Tax Report 2007: Global competition for foreign investment continuing to drive down corporate tax rates
OECD says Europe’s higher marginal tax rates largely explain why European women employees generally work fewer hours

Main Taxation Page

Jobs	Irish Salary Surveys
National Pay Agreement /Minimum Wage	International Salary Surveys
Employment Rights	Pay in Europe 2007
Health and Safety	Global Exec Pay 2007/2008
Irish base executive pay to rise by 4.5% in 2008	Global survey 2007: Managers' pay in the IT function
Global Factory Pay/Cost 2006 - Europe, Americas & Asia
Study says UK workers gain up to 13% in earnings after takeovers by US multinationals
Christmas Fear and a proposed German Minimum Wage - Prof Hans-Werner Sinn
World Pay Report: Emerging Economies come first in new International Pay Stakes
Self-employment accounted for 16% of total employment across EU25 non-financial business economy in 2005; 30% of jobs are in businesses employing less than 10 people
European Union 2005 labour participation for 15-64 year old was highest in Denmark at 75.9%; A staggering 33.3% of Spanish workforce were in temporary jobs
Irish Public Service Benchmarking Body Report: Increases recommended for just 15 of the 109 grades examined

Main Employment Issues Page

Irish Economy Reports	OECD Factbook 2008
ESRI says the Irish economy will experience a recession in 2008 - the first time since 1983; Dramatic slowdown will result in sharp rise in public finances deficit
Ulster Bank lowers forecast of Irish economic growth in 2008 to 0.5%; ECB to keep benchmark rate on hold at 4%
Davy says no problem for Ireland to breach Euro deficit limit temporarily; Limit of 3% of GDP will be approached in 2008 and breached in 2009
Statistical Yearbook of Ireland 2007	Asia Indicators 2008
Statistical Yearbook for Asia & Pacific 2007 - Published 2008
April 2008: IMF says global growth will decelerate in 2008 led by a sharp slowdown in the United States; GDP growth of 1.8% forecast for Ireland
IMF says worldwide losses stemming from the US subprime mortgage crisis could run to $945 billion
Developing Asia to post solid growth in 2008 says Asian Development Bank; Inflation Asia’s biggest risk
World Bank says growth in East Asia will decline slightly to 8.5% in 2008; Export growth of 17% to developing country markets outside region
Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2008
World Bank Development Indicators 2008 - Developing economies now produce 41% of world's output, up from 36% in 2000; China ranks as the second largest global economy
Irish/EU Inflation	Irish Statistics
Key Indicators Ireland/EU Published April 2007	Foreign Direct Investment -OECD countries in 2006
Why US multinationals win the productivity race	Ireland Top Location for US Multinationals' Profits
Country Economic Profiles	Global Income per Capita
Euro-zone and EU25 2005 government deficit at 2.4% and 2.3% of GDP	National Competitiveness Council: Ireland "weak" in key areas
OECD Economic Survey of Ireland: Unusually favourable tax treatment increases role of housing in the economy and adds to volatility in the housing market
Eurostat Yearbook 2007/08 - A mine of information
Irish Enterprise Statistics at a Glance 2007 Report: More than 550 Irish companies invested €100,000 or more in R&D in 2006
OECD releases new GDP and household consumption comparisons based on purchasing power parities; Irish GDP per capita flattered by huge multinational presence
Measuring Ireland's Progress Report 2008: In 2006, Ireland had the second highest GDP per capita in the EU 27 at 45.4% above the EU average. However, based on GNI - Gross National Income- Ireland was the fifth highest at 25.2% above the EU 27 average
Quarterly National Household Survey Q1 2008: Irish employment expanded at slowest pace in five years; Most employment growth was attributable to Non-Irish nationals
Irish overseas commercial property investment surged to €8.2bn in first nine months of 2007; Total investment, mainly overseas, has risen to €50.0bn since 2001
Foreign Direct Investment grew 5% globally in 2007; New FDI projects in Ireland fell 5% and jobs created dropped 40% to 3,886
World's Currencies Grossly Misaligned; UBS report says Asian currencies may soon appreciate sharply to combat inflation with dramatic consequences for global growth
Europe's Housing Markets: Standard & Poor's says Pain in Spain, Ireland and UK; Benign outlook in France
International Monetary Fund says Central Banks should have more focus on home prices; House prices in Ireland, the UK, the Netherlands, and France 30% higher than justified by fundamentals
OECD Economic Survey of Ireland: Unusually favourable tax treatment increases role of housing in the economy and adds to volatility in the housing market
Construction and the Irish Economy: Are we ready for the post-"Golden Age" period?
ESRI Medium-Term Review 2008-2015: Irish economy to grow at 3.75% annual rate; Business services exports very sensitive to Ireland’s competitiveness

Main Economy Indicators Page

Finfacts Blog: Well-fed John Gormley: Anti-Science on GM Foods - Pro-Science on Climate Change

Irish Economy: Minister Brian Lenihan says - "Our record speaks for itself"

World Drug Report 2008: Seizures of amphetamines rise sharply in Saudi Arabia; Afghanistan had a record opium harvest in 2007; Coca cultivation increased by 27% in Colombia

Irish pensions industry body says mandatory pensions would “cause havoc” for private sector workers but ignores reality that purely voluntary system would not work

European Central Bank celebrates its 10th anniversary - a singular achievement that shouldn't be forgotten amidst the maelstrom of pettiness in Ireland's Lisbon Treaty debate

Meath farm sells for €13.5 million; Irish farm land most expensive in Europe

Finfacts Blog: Economics Forecasting and the Irish Economy as oil price heads for $200 a barrel

OECD Irish Public Service Report: The Buck Still Stops Nowhere; Brian Cowen has no record of challenging conventional wisdom

Goldman Sachs says world may face a "super-spike" with crude in range of $150 to $200 a barrel as early as October

IBEC calls for pensions cap as estimated liability for Irish Public Service pensions rises 67% to €75 billion

OECD says that Development Assistance from the 22 top donors fell by 8.4% in real terms in 2007

World Bank President says Sovereign Wealth Funds should invest 1% of their equity in sub-Saharan Africa - - $30 billion

Irish Manufacturing: Report calls on the Government to take urgent action to address rising costs

Dublin fourth most expensive city of 71 global cites - Kuala Lumpur cheapest according to UBS report

Top Japanese companies like Toyota agree annual pay increase for workers of €78 despite pleas from the Prime Minister; Monthly rise equivalent to cost of 3 regular cups of Starbucks' coffee

Comment: Irish Government declares free lunch has not been invented but freeloading continues for ministers

Ireland's 40-year bonanza of foreign aid from the European Union will amount to €41 billion by the time we become a net contributor in 2013

US economy may be in recession; Eurozone economy on the slide

International House Price Comparisons 1970-2006: Irish price growth in 36-year period third highest among 18 Developed Countries

UK commercial property returns plunged into record losses in Q4 2007; Irish returns dropped to 1%

Foreign-owned firms were responsible for 90.2% of Irish exports in 2006 - including both merchandise goods and internationally traded services

China becomes world's top Gold producer ending South African dominance dating from 1905

Adam Smith on the Irish Economy in 2008; Public Sector Reform? A Climate Change Plan or more Platitudes?

Mr. Euro - - Jean-Claude Trichet - - is Finfacts Person of the Year 2007

Irish Female employment rate exceeds EU 2010 target; Women account for 80% of education and health sectors but account for only 30% of medical and dental consultants

Continuing high immigration drives Irish population increase; Only half of foreign nationals assigned Income Tax/Welfare PPSNs in 2004 had employment in Ireland in 2006

ECB says the 21 largest Eurozone banks have €244bn in off-balance sheet assets that they may have to take onto their balance sheets which would impact their lending capacity

Global Manpower Employment Outlook Survey reveals strong Hiring Outlook for Q1 2008 in India, France, Italy and Netherlands; Slight softening trend in US; Ireland has weakest hiring plans globally

Encouraging employment – OECD countries balance benefits, wages and taxes; Net unemployment benefits third-highest In Ireland

Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein to scoop annual earnings of $70 million in 2007 - a record payout for a "hired hand"

How Goldman Sachs made money from US subprime mortgages on the way up and down

National Competitiveness Council says Consumer Price levels in Ireland are 20% higher than EU-15 average; Critical to manage labour costs to enhance productivity

European credit markets back at crisis level; Subdued Irish economic growth likely to last beyond 2008: Minister says lack of Irish public sector reform "is a joke"

European Commission proposes reform of Common Agricultural Policy farm support scheme

Cowen calls for Pay Restraint to rescue faltering Irish international competitiveness

Irish overseas commercial property investment surged to €8.2bn in first nine months of 2007; Total investment, mainly overseas, has risen to €50.0bn since 2001

Oil industry experts predict supply crunch in coming years; Underinvestment, skill shortages and difficult-to-access reserves, likely to keep oil above $100 a barrel for sustained period

Where is the Outrage? Gombeenism thrives at home while in Paris, OECD staff work on proposals for Irish public service reform

Government launches Irish Pensions Green Paper

Cowen says Benchmarking Body "likely" to give weight to the value of public service pension package; Public sector reform not part of agenda

Irish Competition Authority says Dental Fees have risen by 171% since 1990 compared with 69% for all items

Europe has a three speed healthcare system: Austria, Netherlands and France have best public health services; Ireland gets 16th ranking

Top US economist says US housing crisis may trigger recession; Says Fed and other Central Banks do not have remedies like lithium or Prozac to counter the reversal of the Psychology that fed property booms

Irish Census 2006 - Principal Economic Status and Industries: Ballina, County Mayo had the highest unemployment rate among large Irish towns with 15.8% unemployed; Tralee: 14.2% and Dundalk: 13.9%

Demographic factors account for 75% of Ireland's labour force growth in Q2 2007: Non-Irish nationals account for over 41,000 of additional 78,400 jobs in economy since July 2006

Irish Trade Statistics: Policymakers opt for Spin and Delusion rather than confront challenging facts

Irish Economy - Many short-termists silent on likely challenges in medium to long-term

Greencore's Irish operations become property play at time when Irish food industry is faltering

HSBC Future of Retirement Study 2007: Trend of taking early retirement in mature markets, with the exception of Germany, is declining: People not only expect, but want, to continue working

Silver – Probably the most undervalued Asset Class

Why Individual Investors and Institutions should Diversify into Gold - - Mark O'Byrne, Gold and Silver Investments Ireland

Government launches €184 billion National Development Plan - Main Points and Analysis

Survey says 61% of senior UK bosses believe that a fixed target for annual staff dismissal is healthy

Irish Government has spent up to €400 million on management consultants since 1997

Women account for up to 80% of workers in Irish Health and Education Sectors but are poorly represented at senior levels

Cities: Of the 25 wealthiest cities in OECD 30-country area, as measured by GDP per capita, 22 are in US; Others are London (in 13^th place), Paris (18^th) and Dublin (23^rd)

Farmers to get quarter of €18.5bn of taxpayers'money to be spent on Irish main roads over next decade

Nobel Prize Winner and renowned American economist Milton Friedman dies at 94 - - Influenced economic policies of President Ronald Reagan and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher

Irish public service payroll increased by 6,000 to 355,000 in year to June 2006: Up 53,400 since December 2000

The Reports/Comment Page provides access to reports and comment/analysis in areas of Economy, Tax, European Union, Trade/Doha Round, Climate Change, Avian/Bird Flu, Developing Countries' issues and more

Main Business Reports/Comment Page

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