A roundup of today's other business news in brief

Nama to acquire 50% of loans by end of July

The chairman of the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) has said it aims to acquire half of the €81 billion in property loans it will buy from the five participating institutions by the end of July, writes Simon Carswell.

In a speech to the Association of Compliance Officers in Ireland, Frank Daly said it was “hard to understand” the scale of concentration of lending to developers.

Most of the 10 biggest borrowers who had €16 billion in development loans with the five lenders had also borrowed from other institutions, he said.

Some €50 billion in loans was advanced to the top 100 borrowers whose loans will transfer to Nama.

The agency was set up to deal with the consequences of “serious governance failures” in the banks, compounded by inadequate regulation he said.

Trade surplus falls in as exports decline

The trade surplus declined in March as exports fell 4 per cent and imports rose 8 per cent, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) said yesterday.

Seasonally adjusted exports fell to €6.7 billion for the month, while imports were €3.8 billion in March. The figures also showed that for the first two months of the year exports fell 5 per cent to €13.25 billion from €13.96 billion in the same period a year earlier.

Computer equipment fell 47 per cent and organic chemicals slipped 15 per cent. Ireland exported less to Britain during the two months, with goods down 15 per cent.

Openet linked with Cisco takeover

Irish telecoms software firm Openet has been linked with a takeover by networking giant Cisco.

In a note to clients Avian Securities analyst Catharine Trebnick wrote that “industry contacts indicate” is looking at Openet or its Canadian competitor Bridgewater as possible acquisitions that would enhance its portfolio.

Dublin-headquartered Openet produces software that helps telecoms companies introduce new services and generate revenues from them.

Household financial assets up €24.9bn

The net financial assets of Irish households and non-profit institutions rose by €24.9 billion last year, according to figures from the Central Statics Office.

This brings the total value of the sector to €105.8 billion, 31 per cent higher than last year. The financial assets of the sector rose by €20.3 billion, while liabilities – mostly loans – fell by €4.6 billion. Assets include bank deposits, shares, life insurance and pension funds, but exclude housing and other physical assets.