Breakfast Business

The good news is that we saw the most housing completion in the first quarter of any year since 2011. But the bad news for First-time buyers is that house prices are rising at an annual rate of almost double digits. That’s according to the Housing Markets Monitor from the Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland. It also found that 74% of First-time buyer mortgages for given for self-built homes outside the cities in the South and Midwest of Ireland. Anthony O’Brien head of the sector for Research & analysis with the Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland joined Joe Lynam on the show this morning.

A look at today's business papers and websites with Business Editor Joe Lynam.

The consultants Deloitte are marking their 150th anniversary in Cork today. And they’ll do so by announcing that they’ll double their presence in the rebel county. The new jobs will mostly be in a new technology and analytics hub. It’s all part of a wider move by everyone to get ready for the changes that are coming under AI. Harry Goddard, Chief Executive of Deloitte Ireland joined Joe Lynam on Breakfast Business this morning.

With the onset of much better weather last month, our spending adjusted accordingly. According to the AIB spend trend, we spent more on health & beauty as well as hardware in May. We also spent less on pubs, hotels and restaurants. John Brennan is head of SME Banking at AIB and he joined Joe Lynam with the spending details.

A look at today's business papers and websites with Business Editor Joe Lynam.

On Wednesday evening it was confirmed that the European commission was bringing a very serious action against Google for anti competitive behaviour. The charges, if upheld, might even see the breakup of Google's advertising empire - especially when it comes to how adverts are placed online using instantaneous auction places called ad exchanges. The Irishman who brought the American giant’s behaviour to the attention of the Commission is Dr. Johnny Ryan, a senior fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and he joined Joe this morning on the show.

According to the EY Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index, Ireland ranks, 13th out of 40 key countries in the world when it comes to attractiveness for renewable energy investment. Much larger countries such as the US, Germany, and China topped the list. Should we be content or aim higher given our dependency on energy imports was exposed last year when Russia invaded Ukraine? Stephen Prendiville, EY Ireland Head of Sustainability  joined Joe this morning on the show.

Joe Lynam takes a look at Friday's business papers and markets with Michael O’Sullivan from UNIO and author of The Levelling (What's next after globalization?).

If the world’s biggest companies are to go green then often it’s their shareholders that will force them to do so. And most giant companies are controlled to some extent by giant pension funds. Legal & General is one of the largest fund managers worldwide and they have set a series of climate pledges. But have they been sticking to them even when returns might be far more lucrative with not-so-green industries such as oil and defence. Stephen Beer, Senior Manager for sustainability and responsible investment with Legal & General Investment Management.

The number of mortgages approved fell by nearly 14% last month compared to April. It’s down almost 10% year-on-year. But first-time buyers now account for more than 60% of the mortgage market. What can we glean from this latest data from the Banking and Payments Federation? Speaking to Joe this morning with more on this was Ali Ugar is the Chief economist with the Banking & Payments Federation.

A look at today's business papers and websites with Business Editor Joe Lynam.

There has been a lot of talk about how disruptive or even dangerous AI - or artificial intelligence might be. One thing is for sure it will change how many of us work - even if we don't know how yet. Eurofound is the EU based here in Ireland which carries out in-depth research into the workplace and has looked at what kind of jobs we will be doing a lot more or and a lot less in the near future. Speaking to Joe with more on this was Ivailo Kalfin Executive Director of Eurofound - before that, he was Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister.

This time last year, Europe was in the middle of a full-fledged energy crisis. Putin’s war had pushed up gas and oil prices and dragged up wholesale energy prices with them. Now the European Commission hopes to break the link between wholesale gas and electricity prices and push for far more energy independence for the continent. Elisabetta Cornago Senior research fellow, EU energy and climate policy with the think tank: the Centre for European Reform spoke to Joie this morning on the show.

A run-through of some of the business stories this Monday morning.

The Taoiseach as well as key ministers attended the National Economic Dialogue yesterday. Also, there were groups representing the trade union movement, environmental lobby groups as well as academia. The purpose of the NEI is to frame ideas that might be included in the autumn Budget. Representing Business is Danny McCoy the Chief Executive of IBEC who spoke to Joe this morning.

There has been something of a regulatory clampdown on the cryptocurrency platforms of late. Sam Bankman Fried appears in court charged with fraud this week and last week the US watchdog - the SEC - launched a major probe into Binance. But yet the adverts for all types of crypto products keep appearing in social media feeds - and the big platforms appear unable or unwilling to remove adverts that might be for totally bogus investments. Now the consumer advocates in Europe - BEUC - including the CAI here in Ireland have called on the European Commission to do something about it. With more on this Joe was joined on the show by Agustin Reyna Director of Legal and Economic Affairs, from BEUC.

A run-through of some of the business stories this morning with Newstalk Business Editor Joe Lynam.

Last month we heard that the manufacturing sector continued its decline. While last week we heard that the services sector continued its accent. Today we heard from the constructions sector and thankfully it’s in positive territory. John McCartney is the director of research at BNP Paribas real estate who has just published its latest report into the constructions sector.

It’s an old adage that business simply can't bear uncertainty. It’ll handle good times and bad, but lack of clarity is a big No No. Now a group of 60 major companies including Nestlé, Unilever and IKEA are calling for clarity in legal and regulatory terms when it comes to what they should expect when it comes to new laws to govern how the environment is treated. But amid such economic uncertainty and a possible recession in the US this year, is the environment still so important to companies who have a priority to break even or earn a profit? Lucy Gaffney from Business for Biodiversity Ireland joined Joe Lynam on the show this morning.

A look at today's business papers and markets with Business Editor Joe Lynam.