Banks mull Government bonds move, Datalex share sale, and why house sales are accelerating Business Today: the best news, analysis and comment from The Irish Times business desk
about 3 hours ago
AIB and Bank of Ireland are looking into the prospect of becoming primary dealers in Government bonds, as Davy’s exit from this business in the wake of a trade scandal has left the State with no domestic financial house that is approved to be involved in the sale of debt for the State. Joe Brennan has the details.
Joe also reports on Datalex, the travel retail software provider to airlines, which is understood to be planning to approach the market for more than €25 million of equity in June, as it seeks to raise funding ahead of a deadline later this year to repay loans from businessman Dermot Desmond.
Commercial building cost inflation eases to third of pre-Covid levels Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland says latest figures reflect massive impact Covid is continuing to have on the sector
about 4 hours ago
The rate of inflation for commercial building costs eased last year to 2.2 per cent, to about a third of the level of 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI).
The SCSI’s latest tender price index showed that construction price inflation increased by 1.3 per cent in the second half of 2020, a modest increase on the 0.9 per cent recorded in the previous six months. The index excludes residential construction prices.
Independent audit to be carried on housing construction costs paid by Dublin City Council The inquest has been launched following a Business Post report that council executives were concerned a ‘premium price’ was being charged to the local authority 21st April, 2021
Concerns emerged after a Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland report suggested the local authority has paid building contractors roughly €100,000 more per unit than the private market rate to develop apartments. Picture: Getty
An independent audit will be carried out on housing construction costs paid by Dublin City Council following concerns raised about prices being paid to private building contractors.
Kildare fetched the highest land prices in 2020.
Land prices are predicted to rise by up to 8% on average this year, underpinned by a rise in farm incomes as well as strong demand and reduced supply, according to the Teagasc agricultural land market review and outlook report 2021.
According to the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI), 2021 demand for rented ground remains strong, with rents this year expected to rise by 8% in Leinster, 5% in Munster and 6% in Connacht.
The market experts say that restrictions on viewings due to lockdown led to a decrease in the volume of sales during 2020, as prospective sellers opted to defer their plans to sell.