Brexit market turmoil, weaker BAM profits, what next for broadband?

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

Brexit chaos spread well beyond the streets of London on Thursday. Photograph: Getty
Brexit chaos spread well beyond the streets of London on Thursday. Photograph: Getty

Political chaos in London spilled out all over the markets yesterday, with sterling bearing the brunt of the latest Brexit twists. As the UK currency tumbled, so did Irish stocks with UK exposure, leaving the Iseq in bad shape and Irish exporters worried about their Brexit planning. Peter Hamilton reports, while we'll have updates on this developing story throughout the day.

Brexit is also on John FitzGerald's mind today, specifically the issue of illicit business around the Border that could flourish depending on what kind of border exists after the departure deal is done. He predicts large-scale tax fraud unless the UK continues in the customs union, which looks just a shade unlikely at this point.

Barry O'Halloran has details of rising costs causing a dent in profits at National Children's Hospital builder BAM Contractors last year. The company wants the Government to speed up spending on the National Development Plan.

Irish firm VR Education's virtual reality trip on the Titanic is set for launch on Sony's PlayStation later this month, just in time for the Christmas market. Ciara O'Brien reports on what promises to be an immersive experience.

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Revenue at Aldi's UK and Ireland arm rose by a cool £1.4 billion (€1.58 billion) in 2017 as more of us embraced the German chain's no-frills retailing style. Peter Hamilton has the story.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg was promising last night to take more drastic measures to cut down on sensational content on the platform by tweaking its news algorithm. The move came as billionaire George Soros's foundation sharply criticised the company over a reports of a campaign to discredit its critics that involved the financier's name.

This week's Interview of the Week is Ciarán Murray, chairman of clinical trials group Icon, who is this year's recipient of the RDS Gold Medal for Industry. He tells Dominic Coyle how he is lucky to play for the "Real Madrid" of his sector, where he firmly believes in the value of "the team".

With the National Broadband Plan still in disarray, Eoin Burke -Kennedy takes an in-depth look at what is actually needed for effective communications in the more rural parts of the State. He asks if "criss-crossing the countryside with fibre-optic cable" is the really the best option.

In our Work section, Olive Keogh explains why, in a tight jobs market, money isn't the only thing that can lure new employees.

Mark Paul explains in his Caveat column what happened when he participated in a panel discussion on the issue of gender equality in business in front of "a room full of women interested in feminism".

This week's Wild Goose is Semma Badenhorst, a native of Killyleagh, Co Down, who finds herself in a Botswana border town. She tells Barbara McCarthy: "You forge close friendships when you live in a place with a population of just 50,000."

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Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey

Úna McCaffrey is Digital Features Editor at The Irish Times.