Welcome to the Business Post’s Live News section. We’re here all day to keep you up to date on developments in business, tech and current affairs.
17.18 – Markets Wrap
Global markets rose on Friday afternoon after a speech by Jay Powell, the Fed chairman, has sparked home of a September rate cut in the US.
The S&P 500 rose by 1.13 per cent as of 16.30 GMT, with all major groups on the index advancing, as its price approached its previous all-time high. The pan-European Stoxx 600 rose by 51 percentage points, while Germany’s DAX rose by 0.77 per cent.
The UK’s blue chip FTSE-100 index rose by 48 points, closing at 8,327.78.
The Iseq All Share rose by 81 percentage points, or 76.8 basis points, to 9,559.00. This was driven by a 6.67 per cent increase for Corre Energy following a week of consistent market losses, although its stock price is still only trading at €0.12, down from a high of €3.80 in February 2023.
There were also small gains seen by Ryanair (+2.25 per cent) and Dalata (+1.5 per cent), while Datalex was the big faller of the day with a 7 per cent fall.
Fionn Thompson has a full markets wrap.
16.43 – ‘Too early’ for BOE to declare victory on inflation
Andrew Bailey, the Bank of England governor, said it is “too early to declare victory” over inflation but the risks of persistent inflation appear to be receding.
In the text of speech that will be delivered at Jackson Hole later, Bailey said the “second round inflation effects appear to be smaller than we expected” and that “we are now seeing a revision down in our assessment of that intrinsic persistence, but this is not something we can take for granted.”
His comments appeared to suggest the BOE is growing increasingly comfortable with the inflation outlook, having cut interest rates earlier this month, by a quarter point to 5 per cent, for the first time since the start of the pandemic. His words gave no specific guidance on whether a second cut would come in September.
16.35 – Microsoft and CrowdStrike to discuss Windows security changes
Microsoft is planning a meeting next month with cybersecurity companies that operate at the core of its Windows systems to discuss ways in which they can keep last month’s worldwide computer crash from happening again.
Cyber companies — including CrowdStrike, the firm that rolled out a faulty content update last month that led to widespread outages of Windows systems globally — will meet with Microsoft on September 10 at its headquarters in suburban Seattle, the tech giant said.
They are scheduled to discuss best practices on deploying updates on Windows computers and whether security firms should continue to have access to the kernel — or core — of Microsoft’s Windows operating systems.
16.20 – September rate cut decision ‘easy’, says ECB member
The decision for the European Central Bank to lower interest rates next month is straight-forward, according to Mario Centeno, a governing council member.
“Of course the most likely move in terms of monetary policy is to continue cutting rates,” the Portuguese central-bank head said Friday at the Federal Reserve’s annual conference in Jackson Hole.
“September — it’s easy,” he told Bloomberg TV. “October is going to be a funny meeting. It’s always dependent on data. But it’s not on data points, it’s on data trajectories. We don’t look at data points, we look at data trends.”
16.00 – Screen Ireland appointments
Ray Harman, the TV and film composer, has been appointed as chair of the board of Screen Ireland, the state TV and film development agency.
Catherine Magee, a producer who was worked on projects like Normal People, the BBC TV adaptation of the Sally Rooney novel, was also appointed to the Screen Ireland board.
15.35 – Stocks rally after Powell speech
Stocks rallied and bond yields tumbled after Jay Powell, the chair of the US Federal Reserve, said “the time has come” for the central bank to start cutting interest rates.
All major groups in the S&P 500 advanced, with the gauge approaching its all-time highs. Treasuries climbed across the US curve, with the move led by shorter maturities. The dollar retreated against all of its major peers.
Barrons’ has a live blog tracking reaction to the speech.
15:20 – ‘Time has come’ to cut US interest rates – Federal Reserve chair
Jay Powell, the chair of the US Federal Reserve, has signalled he is ready to cut US interest rates in September, making clear his intention to prevent further cooling in the labour market.
Speaking at the Kansas City Fed’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Powell said that “downside risks” to the labour market had increased.
The remarks were the Fed chair’s strongest signal yet that the US central bank will soon cut interest rates from their current 23-year high of 5.25 – 5.5 per cent.
The Fed will next vote on interest rates in mid-September, six weeks before the US presidential election.
Follow the latest developments from Powell’s speech here.
14.50 – Aramark posts sixth consecutive loss
Aramark posted a loss of €7.4 million last year. Picture: Getty
The Irish arm of Aramark continued to be in the red despite an 18 per cent growth in its revenue, as the firm more than doubled its outlay on redundancies during 2023.
Aramark, the owner of Avoca and the catering provider to several direct provision centres, grew its revenues from €266.2 million in 2022 to €314 million for the year ending September 29, 2023, according to company accounts.
However, it continued to post a loss of €7.4 million last year marking the firm’s sixth straight loss-making period in a row.
Fionn Thompson has more on the financial results.
14.40 – US markets update
Stocks climbed as the bond market stabilised, with Wall Street traders seeking clues from Jerome Powell on how fast and how far the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.
Equities rebounded, following a slide fuelled by a tech selloff and speculation that Powell would throw some cold water on market expectations for aggressive policy easing.
The Nasdaq was up 0.84 per cent to 17,767.49 in the minutes after opening, while the S&P Index rose by 0.67 per cent to 5,607.95. Wall Street on the other hand dipped slightly, by 0.27 per cent to 18850.85.
14.25 – Delta Airlines operations chief to depart
Mike Spanos, American airline Delta’s chief operating officer, will depart next month, the chief executive, Ed Bastian, told staff at the firm today.
Spanos is to take another, unspecified role at a different company, after a year in his current role at Delta.
The airline doesn’t plan to replace Spanos, with two executives who work under him now to report directly to Bastian.
The Wall Street Journal has more.
14.05 – YouTube’s ad system is placing major brands beside misinformation
YouTube’s automated advertising systems are placing video ads from major brands alongside content that promotes controversial Project 2025 policy proposals and election misinformation, according to a new report.
Researchers from Eko, a nonprofit consumer watchdog, reviewed advertisements that appeared alongside a sample of 11 videos on Google’s YouTube that backed Project 2025 policies, conspiracy theories about the 2020 US election and hateful rhetoric.
The videos included ads from over 60 global brands, including SKIMS, BetterHelp, Verizon and Slack. Several of the brands have publicly made diversity, equity and inclusion commitments that appear to run counter to the video messaging.
Bloomberg has the full details.
12.50 – Stripe buying back employee shares amidst IPO speculation
Stripe competes with the likes of PayPal Holdings and Adyen in the payment processor space. Picture: Getty
Stripe will again buy back some shares from employees as it remains a closely-watched candidate for an initial public offering.
The employee tender offer will be financed by Stripe’s own cash this time, rather than outside sources, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The deal was first reported by The Information earlier on Thursday.
The venture capital firm Sequoia Capital offered to buy Stripe shares last month at $27.51 (€24.74) each, valuing the firm at $70 billion.
The full story is here.
12.35 – Social media to be monitored for dodgy boxes
Social media is set to be monitored for dodgy boxes, in a new crackdown initiated by the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) and Crimestoppers.
A new campaign will encourage the public to share information about illegal streaming in their communities, to ascertain who is selling dodgy boxes.
“Digital piracy is a serious crime, often run by organised criminal groups. Information provided anonymously to Crimestoppers will be thoroughly investigated by Fact and could lead to further actions, including prosecution,” said a spokesperson for FACT.
The Irish Independent has more.
12.15 – Social Democrats only party to hit candidate gender quotas
The Social Democrats are the only party in the Republic of Ireland to meet their gender quotas so far, meaning that at least 40 per cent of their candidates must be women.
Fine Gael are the furthest from the mark, with only 21 per cent of their candidates women so far. A third of Fianna Fáil’s are women, while Sinn Féin didn’t respond on how many of its candidates are female.
If parties don’t meet their gender quotas, they will lose half of the state funding they receive to run their operations.
The full story can be read on the Irish Independent.
12.00 – Burberry’s 15-year stay in FTSE 100 nears end
Burberry Group Plc is on the verge of exiting the FTSE 100 Index, ending the luxury-goods maker’s 15-year stay in the UK blue-chip gauge.
Hampered by an industry-wide slowdown in demand and a faltering brand revamp, the firm’s shares have slumped by a third over the past three months, sending Burberry tumbling down the market-value rankings that index compiler FTSE Russell uses to determine changes to the benchmark.
Bloomberg has more on the exit here.
11.40 – Isme blasts proposed capital gains tax on family firms
Neil McDonnell, the chief executive of Isme, said that the potential implications for Ireland of the US presidential election could not be overstated. Picture: Sasko Lazarov/Rolling News
Proposed capital gains taxes (CGT) on family businesses would stifle the growth and continuity of indigenous firms, according to an industry body.
In its pre-budget submission, the Irish Small Medium Enterprise Association (Isme) said that plans to apply a CGT liability to the transfer of family firms worth more than €10 million were “illogical and ill-considered”.
The lobby group said that Ireland’s current tax policy and regulatory framework left Ireland vulnerable to external shocks, such as the potential FDI fallout from the upcoming US presidential election.
Eoin O’Hare has the full story.
11.30 – Final body of superyacht sinking is located
The body of the sixth and final missing person from the Bayerian superyacht sinking has been found, according to the Italian Coastguard.
It is believed to be that of 18-year-old Hannah Lynch, the daughter of tech billionaire Mike Lynch.
Other victims of the tragedy included Jonathan Bloomer, Morgan Stanley chair, and his wife, Judy Bloomer, Chris Morvillo, lawyer with Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda Morvillo.
The luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday, after it was struck by a violent storm.
11.15 – A third of Irish firms have put money aside for ransomware attacks
Almost a third of firms in Ireland (31 per cent) have set money aside for ransomware attacks, according to a new survey carried out by global consulting firm Expleo.
A third of those firms reported that they had fallen victim to a cyber attack in the last 12 months, with a quarter admitting that they don’t spend enough on cybersecurity measures.
Almost three in ten (29 per cent) expected that they would fall victim to an attack over the next year.
10.50 – This week’s top tech jobs revealed
Fionn Thompson has been looking at the top tech jobs for this week, with senior posts from Google, Global Payments, Expleo and eBay making the list.
Revolut is seeking an in-house entrepreneurial role, with the ideal applicant having experience in developing a new product or assist in turning around an underperforming product.
Google is also seeking a director of financial planning and analysis engineering, with the ideal candidate responsible for optimising the firm’s financial systems and planning,
For these and more roles, check out the full post here.
10.30 – CarTrawler revenue jumps to €174 million
Annual turnover at CarTrawler, the Irish travel tech firm, grew by 5 per cent to €173.8 million last year, as travel demand rebounded from the lows of the pandemic.
The company credited the stabilisation of car rental prices from the “record high” of 2022 for its performance last year, boosting operating profits 150 per cent up to €8.3 million as car reservations grew 15 per cent on the year before.
The company boasts 250 travel and 70 airline partners, including EasyJet, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Emirates, United Airlines, Uber and American Express Travel.
Eoin O’Hare has the full results.
10.15 – ECB says consumer inflation expectations edging higher in July
Inflation expectations of consumers in the euro area inched higher, according to the European Central Bank, though the increase is unlikely sufficient to stop officials from pushing ahead with interest-rate cuts.
While prices are seen advancing 2.8 per cent over the next 12 months — the same as in June — the measure for three years ahead rose to 2.4 from 2.3 per cent, the ECB said today in a monthly poll.
Expectations about where prices are headed play a key role in driving inflation itself, with policymakers still looking for conclusive evidence that their 2 per cent target will be met late next year as currently planned.
Bloomberg has more on the data here.
10.00 – Hiscox appoints new chair after superyacht death
Global insurance firm Hiscox has named Colin Keogh as its interim chair, in the wake of Jonathan Bloomer’s death onboard the Bayesian superyacht on Monday.
The London-listed company, known for its specialty insurance services and claims service, operates in 14 countries and has a workforce of more than 3,000 people.
Bloomer was one of the victims of the sinking of the luxury yacht Bayesian off the coast of Sicily on Monday, after it was struck by a violent storm.
09.40 – Intel expects rush of applications from staff for exit packages
Pat Gelsinger: Intel’s chief executive. The company opened a new chip manufacturing plant at its Leixlip base in September last year. Picture: Leah Farrell/Rolling News
Management at the Intel plant in Leixlip, County Kildare, are expecting a rush of applications for exit schemes put in place for the substantial reduction of its headcount.
According to reporting in The Irish Times, they are currently devising a plan to work out who should be allowed to go in the case of too many staff applying. This has been taken as a sign of considerable interest in the redundancy packages.
The chipmaker is looking to cut around 15 per cent of its global workforce. It is currently unclear to what extent those redundancies will come from its 5,000-strong Irish staff.
The Irish Times has more.
09.25 – Tesla’s finance VP departs, further shuffling company ranks
Tesla’s head of finance operations, Sreela Venkataratnam, has departed the company, in the last shuffling of the car makers’ top ranks.
An 11-year veteran of the company, Venkataratnam posted on LinkedIn that she would take time off work after stepping down from her role.
Venkataratnam was one of the most senior women at Tesla, and played a strategic role in factory construction and the ramping up of vehicle manufacturing.
The Wall Street Journal has more.
09.05 – Harris accepts Democratic presidential nomination
Vice President Kamala Harris formally accepted the Democratic presidential nomination yesterday, delivering a deeply personal speech as she vowed to prioritize a fight for the middle class and Americans’ reproductive rights.
Harris and her fellow Democrats spent a week gathered in Chicago reinvigorated, eager to seize the mantle of progress and extend a hand to the undecided voters they’ll need to recapture the White House.
Her speech harnessed that momentum while also blunting Republican attacks head-on, leaning on her biography to argue she was best positioned to tackle issues like the economy, immigration, and crime traditionally seen as vulnerabilities
Bloomberg has more on the night here.
08.45 – Rory McIlroy invests in ticketing firm TickPick
Brighton Park Capital and Rory McIlroy’s Symphony Ventures have made a $250 million (€224 million) equity investment in TickPick, a ticketing marketplace that competes with StubHub, SeatGeek, Vivid Seats and others.
Brighton Park now owns a majority of the New York-based company, Kevin Magan, a partner at the investment firm, said in an interview. As part of the investment, Brighton acquired a minority stake in TickPick owned by GreyLion.
The full story can be read here.
08.30 – Property site merger could lead to higher house prices in NI
A Belfast estate agent has raised concerns that the upcoming merger of PropertyPal and Property News, Northern Ireland’s main two housing websites, could drive house prices up.
Elaine Pooler told BBC NI that estate agents across Northern Ireland had been “blindsided” by the merger, which would see the two websites continue to operate independently, under common ownership.
Pooler said the websites would have “free rein” to charge “whatever they like” to list properties, which could drive house prices up.
BBC has more.
08.15 – Markets update
Markets in Dublin, London and Frankfurt opened slightly up this morning, with the Iseq, FTSE and Dax all trading up between 0.23 and 0.27 per cent in the minutes after opening.
The Iseq All Share opened up 0.25 per cent, to 9,506.12, while the FTSE-100 rose by 0.27 per cent, reaching 8,310.28. Germany’s DAX rose 0.24 per cent to 18,536.87.
It follows yesterday’s slight 0.27 per cent dip for the Dublin exchange, a flat day on the FTSE-100, and a rise of 0.25 per cent on the DAX.
08.00 – Collapse in Chinese trading activity
China’s attempts to cool a record bond rally have stalled a drop in yields, but at the cost of a collapse in trading activity to an extent that may create more headaches for policymakers.
Trading in the most active 10-year government bond has steadily decreased over the last two weeks, with the average daily volume on Wednesday and Thursday some 90 per cent below the average of August 7 and 8, according to data from CFETS, the official trading system.
The full story can be read here.
07.50 – Nestle replaces chief executive
Laurent Friexe joined Nestle France in 1986. Picture: Nestle
Swiss food giant Nestle has replaced its chief executive Mark Schneider with company veteran Laurent Freixe, as it looks to boost flagging sales worldwide.
Schneider, the 58-year-old German, changed the structure of the company in the post-pandemic period, when it saw a surge in sales as people stayed at home and bought its products.
But the firm has struggled lately, cutting its full-year sales outlook as consumers become more price conscious in a period of high inflation.
You can read a full analysis on the swap here.
07.40 – CarTrawler paid €47m to parent firm
Irish travel tech firm CarTrawler paid €46.6 million to its parent firm last year, off the back of a strong profit rebound driven by a post-pandemic rebound in global travel.
Filings from the parent firm, Etrawler Unlimited, show that the payments were made to its Isle of Man-based ET Holdco in the 12 months leading to September 2023.
The company makes software used by airlines and travel agents to link in with car-hire firms, with a network of more than 2,200 clients.
The Irish Times has the full story.
07.30 – Dublin landowners have built up tens of millions in unpaid vacant site levies
Dublin landowners have built up tens of millions of euro worth of unpaid vacant site levies since 2018, according to new figures.
The levy was set up in 2017 and was designed to incentivise the use of land sitting idle, and started with a rate of 3 per cent, rising to 7 per cent from the beginning of 2020.
New data released to the Business Post by Dublin City Council has shown there are 135 of these levies that are still unpaid, amounting to a collective €35 million.
John McCallig has the full story.
07.15 – Asian markets update
Asian shares mostly declined Wednesday following a slip on Wall Street that snapped an eight-day winning streak, the longest of the year.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.8 per cent in morning trading to 37,741.53. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.5 per cent to 7,958.40. South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.1 per cent to 2,692.81. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.9 per cent to 17,348.77, while the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP shed 0.3 per cent to 2,858.98.
In Tokyo, Japan’s Finance Ministry reported a 621 billion yen ($4.3 billion) trade deficit in July, as surging global prices pushed imports higher, growing nearly 17 per cent from a year. Robust imports underlined better consumer spending amid rising wages. Japan’s exports also grew, rising 10 per cent, to destinations like the U.S. and China.
07.00 – What’s on today?
Good morning, it’s Liam Coates with you today to keep you up to speed with all the biggest news in the world of business, finance and politics.
We’ll be updating you on all the happenings across major markets this morning and over the course of the week.
It was confirmed yesterday evening that the body of tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was recovered from the superyacht wreck in Sicily.
Vincent Boland has a moving obituary written on the Business Post today.
