Ireland

The Exchange: Telecoms mogul David McCourt

25 August 2020

The pandemic has made connecting rural areas a global priority. The Irish-American cable entrepreneur explains to Aimee Donnellan why he returned to Dublin to roll out a 3 billion euro broadband programme, and how the Covid-19 crisis created an opportunity to transform business.

Ireland’s Golfgate can reveal a more responsive EU

24 August 2020

The Irish public are outraged about an elite golf jolly that flouted Covid-19 restrictions. One minister has resigned and European Commissioner Phil Hogan is under severe pressure. A swift departure would help Brussels look less like a technocratic refuge from popular politics.

Ryanair pain will be milder than rivals’ misery

27 July 2020

CEO Michael O’Leary is focusing on preserving cash and cut staff costs by 77% in the first quarter. Competitors that have more unionised employees can’t tighten their belts as much. Another big wave of infections would be even worse for them than the 11 bln euro budget carrier.

Irish eyes keep smiling despite a strict lockdown

29 May 2020

Village pubs are shut until August. The Emerald Isle’s restrictions may look extreme but have kept deaths low even if unemployment has soared to near 30%. Yet with ample supplies and a clear reopening plan, Matt Damon isn’t alone in finding Ireland an ideal pandemic bolthole.

Irish banks caught between two crises

12 May 2020

Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Banks’ shares have performed worse than most European lenders this year. A recession and 25% unemployment explain some of the pain. The bigger worry is that the state, an investor following the 2009 bailout, will force both to prop up the economy.

Ireland has more pressing needs than unification

25 February 2020

Sinn Fein, which wants to form a coalition government, aspires to unify the island. Even if Irish voters were willing to take on the costs this would entail, their Northern Ireland peers are more ambivalent. Healthcare is higher up the agenda on both sides of the border.

Shock Irish vote spells end of budget restraint

10 February 2020

Nationalist Sinn Fein unexpectedly polled the most votes in a weekend election. The party won’t be able to form a coalition if its centre-right rivals stick to their guns and shun the victor. Even so, its big spending plans, which won over voters, will influence economic policy.

Ryanair’s budget can stretch to truer green boasts

5 February 2020

The low-cost carrier has been ticked off for promoting itself as a low-carbon emitter. True, its planes are getting more efficient, but it’s still a huge polluter. Ryanair’s profitability means boss Michael O’Leary can afford to match rival easyJet in paying to offset its CO2.

Irish election fight ducks Brexit but victor won’t

4 February 2020

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar may be ousted at the weekend. The campaign has been dominated by housing and healthcare concerns and politicians of all stripes are responding with spending pledges. The winner will struggle to deliver unless Britain’s EU trade negotiations go well.

Rising fares squeeze Ryanair’s budget mantra

10 January 2020

The low-cost carrier lifted its full-year earnings forecast by 17% after a bumper holiday season. Boss Michael O’Leary can thank Thomas Cook’s demise and grounded 737 MAX planes for dearer tickets. But price hikes dent the halo of the self-appointed patron saint of cheap flights.

Ryanair’s ascent could yet hit a 737 MAX ceiling

4 November 2019

The European budget carrier’s shares have soared, mainly since a price war is proving less painful than feared. Yet darker clouds lie ahead. Delays in reviving the troubled jet are crimping growth in passengers. Without the more efficient plane, costs will be harder to control.

Irish bookie’s $6 bln deal is worth a flutter

2 October 2019

Paying a 38% premium usually raises eyebrows. Not so with Paddy Power parent Flutter Entertainment’s all-share acquisition of Toronto-based Stars Group. Cost savings alone almost justify the price. Meanwhile a revenue boost looks credible as legal U.S. sports betting opens up.

Ryanair boss’s bonus gets an apt level of anger

19 September 2019

Almost half the budget airline’s shareholders voted against a package that could see CEO Michael O’Leary get 99 mln euros over five years. They stand to gain if he hits his targets. But given it looks relatively easy to do so they are right that it’s only barely acceptable.

Brexit pulls Ireland out of ECB force field

30 July 2019

Yields on Irish bonds have been rising even as they fall across the euro zone. Fear of a chaotic UK exit from the EU outweighs hope of European Central Bank easing. Dublin lacks its own currency or control of monetary policy. Public spending will have to cushion any shocks.

Irish central banker job glitch may be a blessing

11 June 2019

The government was thrilled to recruit a New Zealand Treasury official as its new governor. Now he faces an investigation about how he handled early accessing of budget information. If things go wrong, Ireland has a second chance to give Deputy Governor Sharon Donnery the job.

Ryanair left dependent on pricier sandwiches

20 May 2019

The budget carrier’s costs soared due to expensive fuel and the need to pay pilots more. Boss Michael O’Leary can’t do much about that, nor the price war Ryanair has flown into. The only way to get margins back up is to sell customers even more pricier in-flight stuff.

Experian has as much credit as it deserves

15 May 2019

The data goliath’s revenue benefited from a cyberattack on rival Equifax, healthy U.S. growth, and its Brazilian push. An economic downturn would reverse the tide and lower profit margins may be the price of boosting sales. Its valuation premium over peers is big enough already.

Irish import new thinking into ECB from Down Under

1 May 2019

Ireland has hired New Zealand’s treasury chief, Gabriel Makhlouf, as its new central bank boss. While not a rate-setter, he arrives from a country that added an employment target to its monetary authority’s inflation goal. And Dublin can brag it is attracting global talent.

Dublin’s office boom lacks residential support

5 April 2019

Commercial construction in Ireland is back at pre-crisis levels. Tech giants and banks seeking a post-Brexit perch are fuelling demand for office space. But with Ireland building fewer than 20,000 homes a year – half what is needed – workers will struggle for affordable housing.

Berry takes risky leaf out of Apollo playbook

8 March 2019

The U.S. packager has beaten the private equity group, its former owner, by snapping up UK peer RPC for $4.4 bln. It looks set to ape a private equity-style strategy of rolling up smaller rivals. But the deal comes with high debt, aggressive synergies, and limited due diligence.