Fianna Fáil is back for a second crack at putting a legislative cap on standard variable mortgage rates, having had its last push in this area run into the sand. It is a noble endeavour. It is based on the premise that greedy banks, facing limited competition in the marketplace, are filling their boots by […]

(Reuters) – The U.S. Treasury will lift sanctions on the core empire of Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska, including aluminum giant Rusal and its parent En+, watering down the toughest penalties imposed since Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. In April, the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Deripaska, Rusal, En+ and other companies in which he owns […]

BERLIN/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Volkswagen (VW) (VOWG_p.DE) is buying a controlling stake in Volvo’s (VOLVb.ST) WirelessCar, a digital service developer specializing in connected driving, for 1.1 billion Swedish crowns ($122 million), the companies said on Wednesday. VW said WirelessCar technology would further its goal of developing value-added services for customers by enabling safe and stable data […]

BEIJING/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices fell on Thursday to erase most of their gains from the day before, resuming declines seen earlier in the week amid worries about oversupply and the outlook for the global economy. The front-month U.S. crude contract CLc1 had fallen 78 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $47.39 per barrel by 0129 […]

A storm has broken out between retailers and forecasters amid claims “alarmist” weather warnings are deterring people from the shops. Retail Excellence released phase one of its 2018 Christmas Trading Statement, claiming that weather alerts were “significantly damaging footfall”. Following consultation with more than 300 retailers, it said key findings were that “no matter what […]

America’s central bank resisted pressure from the US president – who has tweeted repeatedly about his opposition to the expected rate rise – to lift its benchmark rate to a range of 2.25% to 2.5%. It was the fourth hike of 2018 but the Fed signalled just two more next year, down from a previous […]

The man behind a new online freelance marketplace believes its focus on trust, reliability and security will establish it as a platform leader. TaskMatch allows its users to either post or find tasks for free, with payment only made – via Stripe – when the job is completed. Co-founder Conor Lyons (35) said that, by […]

The Federal Reserve announced a widely expected quarter-point increase in its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday, and signaled that it plans to continue raising rates next year. The Fed emphasized the strength of economic growth in a statement released after a two-day meeting of its policymaking committee. It said firms keep adding jobs and consumers […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil stabilized on Wednesday after one of its biggest falls in years, but remained under pressure from oversupply and concern that a slowing global economy would depress demand. Benchmark Brent crude oil was up 45 cents at $56.71 a barrel by 1215 GMT, after dropping 5.6 percent on Tuesday and at one […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks pared gains on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq index turning negative, after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates but forecast fewer rate hikes for 2019. The Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement following a two-day policy meeting that risks to the economy were “roughly balanced,” but that it […]