Latest news with #multinationalfirms
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ireland Needs Fiscal Rule as Economic Risk Grows, Watchdog Warns
The Irish government should commit to a domestic fiscal rule so it can better plan spending as the economy enters uncertain territory, the state's fiscal watchdog warned. A global trade war stoked by US President Donald Trump is likely to have an outsized impact on Ireland, the strategic tax base for several multinational firms. Sticking to a fiscal rule would set a sustainable growth rate for spending net of tax changes, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council said in its June fiscal assessment report.
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Corporate tax take tumbles 30% for May with €1.1bn less over same month last year
The State's corporate tax receipts fell 30 per cent last month, with the exchequer collecting €1.1 billion less in May compared to the same month last year. Downplaying the decline, the Department of Finance attributed it to 'once-off factors' which, it said, boosted receipts last year and distorted the year-on-year comparison. The latest exchequer returns for May indicated the Government collected €2.5 billion in corporate taxes last month, compared to almost €3.6 billion last year. Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said May was among the more important months for tax revenues and the steady growth in most tax headings pointed to an economy 'that is in a relatively good position'. READ MORE While the drop in corporate tax could be attributed to one-off factors, he said, it highlighted the degree of concentration in the corporate tax base where a small number of multinational firms 'can significantly impact on the overall tax yield'. 'In a context of unprecedented uncertainty in the international economic landscape, this serves as a timely reminder of Ireland's exposure to changes in the global trading environment, and of the vital importance of adhering to a sensible and sustainable budgetary strategy,' he said. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank (ECB) confirmed its latest interest rate cut yesterday. For tens of thousands of mortgage holders, the eighth cut in the last year means they have seen the annual cost of their home loans fall by about €2,000. However, the downward rate cycle appears to be coming to an end. ECB president Christine Lagarde confirmed as much when she said that 'at the current level of interest rates, we believe that we are in a good position to navigate the uncertain conditions that will be coming up'. When asked if the bank was on the cusp of declaring victory in its battle against inflation, she replied that 'victory laps are always nice, but there is always another battle.' Those who will be first in line to benefit from the latest rate cut will be about 126,000 tracker mortgage holders. Each rate cut of 0.25 per cent is worth about €13 to this cohort, with the eight cuts over the last 12 months equating to savings of just under €2,000 over a year for someone with an outstanding home loan of €150,000. Although there is speculation that September will be marked by a further rate cut, the ECB said it would 'follow a data-dependent and meeting-by-meeting approach to determining the appropriate monetary policy stance' and stressed it was not committing to a particular rate path. Separate figures on Thursday from the Central Statistics Office pointed to economic growth of almost 10 per cent in the first quarter, up from a previous estimate of 3 per cent, as exporters rushed to get merchandise into the US in advance of the imposition of tariffs. Since April 5th, goods imported from all countries into the US have been subject to a 10 per cent tariff, while US president Donald Trump has put a stay on a possible 50 per cent tariff on all EU imports until next month. Pharma accounts for the lion's share of Irish goods exports to the US, and companies in the sector here have been fast-tracking products to avoid the tariffs. The pharma-dominated industry sector expanded by 17.1 per cent in the first quarter compared with the previous three-month period. By contrast, the domestic economy grew by just 0.8 per cent.
