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Manufacturing expands, SMEs fall behind, and what next for Irish television?

Business Today: the best news, analysis and comment from The Irish Times business desk

Agenda: What next for the Irish television sector? Photograph: iStock

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Úna McCaffrey
Fri Sep 1 2023 - 06:27

Irish manufacturing activity expanded for the first time in six months in August “driven by a fresh upturn in new orders”, according to the latest AIB purchasing managers’ index (PMI). Eoin Burke-Kennedy has more detail on the PMI reading, which seems to buck the global trend.

The news comes as ECB policymakers continue to wrestle with mixed economic messages as they mull another interest rate rise this month. On Thursday, the Minister for Finance Michael McGrath told Irish lenders that they must engage with their mortgage customers to prevent them falling into arrears as the landscape for rates continues to shift. Ian Curran has more on that.

Still in financial services, KBC has said its final goodbye to Irish branch banking, freezing its last 143 customer current accounts and closing its remaining Dublin retail hub, as Joe Brennan reports.

Search and rescue helicopter crews are seeking guarantees that they will still have jobs once a new contractor takes over the service in 2025, writes Barry O’Halloran. The development comes soon after the Government confirmed that multinational Bristow had won the contract to provide the service and would take over from current operator, CHC Ireland.

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Irish SMEs are “falling behind” with ecommerce and must evolve to meet consumer demands, according to a new report from .IE. Ellen O’Regan has details of the research, which is accompanied by a call for extra Government supports to help smaller retailers to develop their online presence.

In this week’s Agenda, Laura Slattery dives into the ‘edgy back-to-school feeling’ that pervades much of the Irish television industry in advance of critical months for revenues. She looks at the issues at play across the sector, including the near-term funding crunch at RTÉ, the long-term future of the licence fee and the ever-growing battle for viewers.

In his Economics column, John FitzGerald takes the planning system to task, calling for rules that strike a balance between protecting the environment and addressing the housing crisis. He also suggests that the existing system ‘gives too much attention to hypothetical effects on neighbours’.

And in Any Other Business, John Burns brings news of expansion plans at Dublin jeweller Weir & Sons, Patrick Coveney’s height issue, Dómhnal Slattery’s €2.3 million payout from a green energy billionaire, and more.

Colin Gleeson profiles the latest batch of nominees from this year’s EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition, with this week’s entrants’ activities ranging from solar power to digital technology, crisps and emissions.

Do you find that tiny things mount up at work and end up making you more angry and frustrated than each annoyance should merit? Welcome to the world of microstresses, which can lead workers to snap if left to fester. Olive Keogh explains.

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