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.
17.05 - Miagen launches new financial planning service for football clubs
Miagen, a financial planning firm, has unveiled a new service for elite football clubs, which would aim to save over €3 million in wages.
SportsGen would help European football clubs which are facing “financial scrutiny”.
The Irish Independent has more.
16.45 - Revenue pursues Frank Gleeson’s Le Perroquet
Le Perroquet café and bar on Wicklow Street, in Dublin 2, has become the latest Frank Gleeson venue to face being wound up, according to High Court filings.
Last month, Revenue filed a petition in the High Court to have Leafwell Limited, the company behind the Wicklow Street venue, wound up.
Dominic McGrath has the story.
16.30 - Iseq closes in the green
The Iseq All Share Index has closed the trading week in the green, up 0.25 per cent since previous close, at 10,865.13.
Mincon Group saw the biggest bounce in shares, with a 4.76 per cent rise to €0.44, while Kingspan (up 1.97 per cent) and Greencoat Renewables (up 1.63 per cent) also saw gains.
Meanwhile, Kenmare Resources experienced the largest slump of shares, down 2.94 per cent to €4.756, while Origin Enterprises (down 0.84 per cent) and Ryanair (down 0.81 per cent) also saw declines in shares.
16.19 - ‘Black holes everywhere’ in €250m case against former Irish Nationwide boss Fingleton
An over €250 million damages claim against former Irish Nationwide Building Society’s (INBS) boss Michael Fingleton contains “black holes everywhere”, the High Court has heard.
Kevin Lynch, of Clerkin Lynch LLP for Fingleton, said the plaintiffs were asking the court to make an assessment on business decisions from two decades ago and in the absence of critical information.
16.15 - Construction media founder warns of challenges facing UK builders
Construction firms in the UK have had "everything thrown at them" in recent years, the Irish founder of an industry media company has said.
Andrew Curtin, the Cork-born founder of the Construction Wave website, said the sector was on a "hamster wheel" after years of rising costs, labour shortages and a spike in the cost of materials.
It comes as the outlet prepares to hold a major summit on Monday for construction industry chiefs, who have been at the coal face of the squeeze facing the sector.
16.00 - US Postal Service reports $3.3 billion quarterly net loss
The US Postal Service (USPS) reported a net loss of $3.3 billion for the three months ending March 31 as the money-losing agency continues to hike stamp prices and look at ways to cut costs.
USPS said its controllable loss was $848 million, up from $317 million in the same quarter last year as mail volume continues to fall. In late March, U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy resigned under pressure from the White House.
Reuters has more.
15.45 - Vespa maker Piaggio's revenue falls to €370.7m
Italy's Piaggio posted first-quarter 2025 consolidated revenue of €370.7m, down from €428m the same time last year.
Piaggio sold 106,800 vehicles in the first three months of the year, compared to 120,300 in the first quarter of 2024, while its gross industrial margin reached 30.5 per cent of revenue.
15.30 - Tipperary businessman Declan Kelly joins David Beckham and Gary Neville to buy Salford City FC
Irish businessman Declan Kelly joined forces with David Beckham and Gary Neville in a consortium led by global investing platform Consello, to buy Salford City Football Club (SCFC).
The club will be led by Beckham, Neville, who is chairman of Consello Sports in the UK Mervyn Davies, chair of the advisory board, and Kelly.
Kelly and Davies will both serve as co-chairs of the club’s board of directors.
The club was previously owned by a contingent of Manchester United’s Class of 92; Phil Neville, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Nicky Butt.
15.15 - Trump says 80% tariff on Chinese goods 'seems right'
US President Donald Trump said that 80 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods "seems right" as representatives prepared for weekend talks to contain a trade war between the EU and US
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and chief trade negotiator Jamieson Greer will meet Chinese economic tsar He Lifeng in Switzerland for talks that could be the first step toward resolving their trade disputes.
"China should open up its market to USA - would be so good for them!!! Closed markets don't work anymore!!!" Trump said in a Truth Social post. "80% tariff on China seems right. Up to Scott B," Trump said.
15.00 - Central Bank appointed as ‘trusted flagger’ by Coimisiún na Meán to root out online scams and fraud
Ireland’s online media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, has announced the Central Bank of Ireland as its first ‘trusted flagger’ to help detect and report scams and online fraud.
Under the EU’s Digital Services Act, online tech platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube are obliged to give priority to notifications from officially appointed ‘trusted flaggers’ and must also act quickly to ensure that the flagged content is not illegal.
The Central Bank is the sole ‘trusted flagger’ appointed by the regulator, despite the scheme being open to applicants since early 2024. Coimisiún na Meán says that it hopes other entities will apply for the status, which requires heightened levels of resource allocation and commitment.
Read more on the Irish Independent.
14.45 - Italy's Moltiply sues Google in 3 billion euro lawsuit over market dominance
Italy's Moltiply Group said on Friday it was suing Alphabet's Google and seeking damages of €2.97 billion for abuse of its dominant market position as previously recognised by the EU Court of Justice.
Moltiply operates the popular Italian price comparison website Trovaprezzi.it.
Its claim argues that Google's actions hindered the growth of its subsidiary 7Pixel between 2010 and 2017, favouring Google Shopping instead, Moltiply said in a statement.
Read the full story on Reuters.
14.30 - Wall St opens higher ahead of US-China weekend meeting
Wall Street's main indices opened higher on Friday ahead of a key weekend meeting between the US and China in Switzerland regarding tariffs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.09 per cent at the open to 41,405.48, the S&P 500 rose 0.28 per cent at the open to 5,679.65, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 94.4 points, or 0.53 per cent to 18,022.549.
14.15 - Electricity demand falls in April from winter peaks
Wind power met 27 per cent of electricity demand in April, while solar power provided for 4 per cent of electricity used across the country, new figures from grid operator EirGrid shows.
35.2 per cent of electricity came from renewable energy last month, Eirgrid said.
Gas was again the single biggest source of electricity generation for the month at 41.5 per cent, and electricity imported via interconnection met 16.5 per cent of demand.
14.00 - PTSB chief Eamonn Crowley ‘welcomes’ Revolut competition
Eamonn Crowley, the chief executive of PTSB, has said the lender takes confidence in how the state has dealt with its divestment from AIB - but is focusing on growing its own attractiveness for shareholders.
Asked how the bank was dealing with new challengers in the market offering mortgage products, including Revolut, which has said it will roll out a mortgage product in September, Crowley said he “welcomes competition”.
Read the full article by Laura Roddy here.
13.30 - Work to begin on large-scale data centre in Arklow
Work is to begin later this year on the first of two large-scale data centres in Arklow, Co Wicklow, which will create 715 permanent jobs as well as 2,600 roles during construction.
The project has a total investment of €3.5 billion.
The development is by Irish-owned company Echelon Data Centres which has operations in the UK, North America and Europe.
13.15 - Aer Lingus CEO says there has been no drop in passenger demand on US routes
The chief executive of Aer Lingus says the airline has seen no drop in demand for travel between the US and Ireland this year, saying its bookings are up.
Lynne Embleton, Aer Lingus chief executive, said on Friday that the airline is seeing no evidence of a softening in demand to visit the US this year, despite evidence elsewhere that tougher US immigration enforcement may be turning visitors off. She also queried Central Statistics Office figures here that have shown a fall in visitors to Ireland this year.
Read more on the Irish Independent.
13.00 - Eli Lilly outlines support for Trump’s plans to ‘repatriate’ supply chains back to the US
Eli Lilly has said it supports the Trump administration’s efforts to move US companies’ supply chains back to the states.
Speaking to analysts following the publication of the company’s quarterly results, David Ricks, chair and chief executive of Eli Lilly, said that the company supports plans to move supply chains back to the US.
“There is an agenda item in the administration to repatriate supply chain and one we support,” he said.
12.45 - Data centres will build ‘microgrids’ to get around energy lockout - Schneider Electric Ireland head
Data centre operators could build their own electricity ‘microgrids’ after being blocked from accessing the national energy system, according to the new vice president of Schneider Electric Ireland.
Speaking to the Business Post, Rhonda Doyle said that microgrids are an “innovative way” for data centres to power themselves and give back energy to the electricity system.
Schneider Electric has been servicing the data centre sector with IT equipment and solutions that help manage their high energy demand. The French-headquartered business also sells into the food and beverage industry, to residential clients, and to those operating in heavy industries.
12.30 - Bank of Ireland Commences €36m Overhaul of College Green Buildings
Bank of Ireland has begun a three-year, €36 million refurbishment of its historic College Green complex in Dublin, with John Paul Construction appointed as the lead contractor.
The extensive works will include the repair and restoration of 280 windows, 45 staircases, and 54 roofs, along with the installation of 200km of electrical cabling and 2.5km of roof walkways. The project will also deliver upgraded facilities for customers and modernised workspaces for staff.
12.15 - India offers to slash tariff gap by two-thirds in dash to seal trade pact with Trump
India has offered to slash its tariff gap with the US to less than 4 per cent from nearly 13 per cent now, in exchange for an exemption from President Donald Trump's "current and potential" tariff hikes, two sources said, as both nations move fast to clinch a deal.
This would mean that the average tariff differential between India and the US, calculated across all products without weighting for trade volume, would be reduced by 9 percentage points, in one of the most sweeping changes to bring down trade barriers in the world's fifth largest economy.
12.00 - DunPort secures increased funding of €106 million from British Business Bank
DunPort Capital Management, the Dublin-based alternative investment manager, has received increased funding of £90 million (€106 million) from British Business Bank to support small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The investment, which is a £40 million increase on the original fund amount announced in May 2024, is intended to support debt funding to lower mid-market companies through DunPort’s co-investment vehicle, Alder Corporate Credit.
Oisín Gaffey has the full story.
11.45 - Dublin wastewater project doubles in cost to €1.3bn after seven year wait in planning system
The cost of the Greater Dublin Drainage water infrastructure project is expected to have doubled to €1.3 billion in the seven years it has been stuck in the planning system, a top Uisce Eireann executive has said.
Maria O’Dwyer, infrastructure delivery director with Uisce Eireann, was speaking at the Business Post National Infrastructure Summit in Dublin, where she outlined the challenges facing the state’s water utility in delivering capital projects.
Daniel Murray has the full story.
11.30 - Iconic music shop HMV to reopen in Limerick for first time since 2010s
Iconic music store HMV will reopen in Limerick next week, more than a decade since it ceased trading there.
HMV left the Irish high street in 2016 after three years of financial troubles, and closed its Irish online operation in 2018. A year later, Canada-based Sunrise Records run by music impresario Doug Putman took over running HMV's remaining UK stores.
Read more on the Irish Examiner.
11.15 - Production in manufacturing industries up 11.3 per cent in Q1 2025 - CSO
From January 2025 to March 2025, production in manufacturing industries increased by 11.3 per cent when compared with the previous quarter, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office.
Over the three months from January 2025 to March 2025 (Q1), production in manufacturing industries was 33.6 per cent higher when compared with the same period in 2024.
On a monthly basis, production in manufacturing industries rose by 9.9 per cent between February 2025 and March 2025.
On an annual basis, the modern sector experienced an increase of 39.5 per cent in production in Q1, compared with the same period in 2024. In contrast, annual production in the traditional sector declined by 2.5 per cent.
In Q1 2025, turnover in manufacturing industries was up by 24.6 per cent when compared with the previous three-month period.
11.00 - German stocks hit record high as trade optimism buoys markets
Germany’s Dax index climbed to a record high on Friday, becoming the first major European benchmark to recoup the losses sparked by Donald Trump’s tariff threats, as investor optimism over US trade deals boosted global markets.
The Dax was 0.6 per cent higher in morning trading, after Thursday’s announcement of a US-UK trade deal was followed by a call between US President Trump and Germany’s new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, in which they agreed on the need to resolve trade disputes quickly. The US and China are also scheduled to meet this weekend to try to de-escalate the tariff war.
Read more on the Financial Times.
10.45 - Alphabet takes $120bn hit as users turn to AI instead of search
For more than a year, Alphabet shareholders have fretted over long-term risks posed by artificial intelligence to the company’s money-printing search business. This week the threat became much more immediate.
Court testimony from an Apple executive on Wednesday revealed that the iPhone maker is exploring adding AI services to its web browser for which Google now pays an estimated $20 billion a year to be the default search engine. Potentially more worrisome: searches on Apple’s Safari fell for the first time last month, according to Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of services.
10.30 - EU considering easing use of securitisations for bank liquidity buffers
The European Commission is considering changes that would make it more appealing for banks to hold asset-backed securities as part of their emergency cash reserves.
The move is part of a broader plan to revive Europe’s €1.2 trillion securitisation market, which politicians hope can play a key role in financing areas like housing, energy and defence.
The European Union’s executive arm circulated a set of potential proposals this week widening the criteria for securitisations that can be counted towards banks’ high-quality liquid assets requirements beyond the AAA-rated senior portions already included.
10.15 - Nissan abandons plan for $1.1 billion EV battery plant in southern Japan
Nissan Motor said on Friday it would abandon a plan to build a $1.1 billion factory for electric vehicle batteries on Japan's southwestern island of Kyushu, marking the latest change of plans for the troubled automaker.
Japan's third-biggest automaker had announced in January the plan for a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery plant in the city of Kitakyushu that was set to create about 500 jobs with an investment of 153.3 billion yen ($1.05 billion).
10.00 - Irish tech veterans back Gudog co-founder to automate logistics workflows with AI agents
Fresh from the sale of Gudog,a dog-sitting platform that was acquired two weeks ago, its co-founder James McElroy has secured €1.5 million in pre-seed funding for a new venture from backers that include several well-known Irish tech veterans.
Axe is an AI startup building autonomous agents for logistics teams, which McElroy has founded with Dan Quill. The company is developing agents that will take over thousands of repetitve tasks for freight carriers and brokers, including order entry, quoting, scheduling, and even phone calls to drivers.
AI agents, for the uninitiated, not only act on simple queries posed by users like chatbots such as ChatGPT do, they can carry out a wider range of actions, and without the need for constant guidance.
Read the full story by Charlie Taylor here.
09.45 - BP shares rise as FT reports more rivals looking at possible takeover
Shares in BP edged higher on Friday after the Financial Times reported a number of rivals have "run the numbers" about a possible takeover of the London-listed oil company.
Shell, Chevron, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, and Adnoc have all looked at the figures, the FT reported citing sources, while trading house Vitol might be interested in elements of the business.
09.30 - No EU/US trade deal could see 75,000 jobs lost or not created in medium term - Donohoe
Between 50,000 and 75,000 jobs may be lost or not created in Ireland over the medium term if no deal is achieved between the European Union (EU) and the US on tariffs, the finance minister Paschal Donohoe has said.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Donohoe said that up to 25,000 of those jobs could be affected as soon as next year if no deal is reached and the full remit of tariffs are enacted.
“We believe our economy will grow next year. It will grow this year, but it will grow at a smaller pace. We believe we will still have a record level of employment within our economy,” he said.
Fionn Thompson has the full story.
09.15 - Nvidia modifies H20 chip for China to overcome US export controls, sources say
Nvidia plans to release a downgraded version of its H20 artificial intelligence chip for China in the next two months, following US export restrictions on the original model, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The US chipmaker has notified major Chinese customers, including leading cloud computing providers, that it aims to release the modified H20 chip in July, two of the sources said.
The downgraded H20 represents Nvidia's latest attempt to maintain its presence in one of its most crucial markets in the face of Washington's expanding efforts to restrict China's access to advanced semiconductor technology.
Read the full article on Reuters.
09.00 - IAG results: Profits beat estimates, Aer Lingus losses narrow, group orders 53 new aircraft
IAG, the owner of Aer Lingus and British Airways, has reported better than expected first quarter profits as Aer Lingus’ losses narrowed year-on-year.
The airline group reported adjusted operating profit of €198 million, far ahead of the estimated €144.9 million, which the group attributed to falling fuel prices and higher capacity.
Its revenues rose by 9.6 per cent year-on-year to €7.04 billion, ahead of the estimated €6.8 billion.
It also announced the purchase of 53 new Airbus and Boeing aircraft for its long-haul fleet. A total of 32 Boeing 787-10 aircraft will be bought for British Airways, while 21 Airbus A330-900Neo aircraft will be deployed within Aer Lingus, Iberia or Level.
Operating losses narrowed at Aer Lingus in the first quarter of the year, from €82 million in 2024 to €55 million in the current year.
Read more by the Financial Times.
08.45 - AIB raises $750m from new bond, cites ‘extremely strong’ demand
AIB has said demand was “extremely strong” for a new bond from which it has raised $750 million at an interest rate of 5.32 per cent.
In a statement, the bank said demand from institutional investors peaked at over $6.5 billion, “with minimal attrition in the final order book, enabling the bank to reduce the coupon on the bond down from the originally envisaged interest rate of US Treasuries + 1.65 per cent”.
It said the investor book consisted of orders from around 170 investors from across North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific, and marks AIB’s “largest ever order book on an oversubscription basis” at ~8.2x.
08.30 - DAA steps up plans for new public viewing facility at Dublin Airport
Dublin Airport hopes that the delivery of improved viewing facilities for the public to watch planes take off and land on the airport's runways will be able to progress after it provided Fingal County Council with additional information regarding a proposal submitted by DAA last year.
DAA's proposal is to significantly enhance the site of the current informal airport viewing point on Old Airport Road, locally known as "The Mound". The facility would provide a designated space for people to view aircraft movements, with a clear view of the south runway (10R/28L) and the cross-wind runway (16/34) at Dublin Airport.
Additional information provided by DAA includes; an agreement to relocate bicycle parking facilities on the site, details of the materials that would be used in construction, and answers to other questions posed by the planning authority regarding the decision to include certain amenities within the development.
08.15 - Irish markets update
The Iseq All Share opened in the green on Friday, rising 0.57 per cent (+60.91bps) since previous close to 10,898.94.
This increase could be attributed to main risers such as Kenmare Resources (+7.21 per cent) and Cairn Homes (+0.49 per cent) to €4.90 per share and €2.06 per share, respectively.
Meanwhile, bottom performer on the market was life sciences company, Malin Corporation, which lost 5.74 per cent to €8.20 per share.
08.00 - Commerzbank posts surprise profit increase as it fends off UniCredit
Germany's Commerzbank, fending off a possible takeover by Italy's UniCredit, said today that net profit rose nearly 12 per cent in the first quarter, defying expectations for a drop.
Net profit of €834 million in the quarter compares with a profit of €747 million a year earlier.
Analysts had on average expected profit of €698 million, according to a consensus forecast published by Commerzbank.
07.45 - Review under way into DAA’s international duty free and consulting operations
Dublin Airport operator DAA is reviewing its international duty free and consulting operations, raising questions over the terms on which the State-owned business invests in global aviation markets.
The internal review of duty free retailer Aer Rianta International (ARI) and management consultancy arm DAA International (DAAI) comes amid uncertainty over their growth prospects after failing to land new contracts they had targeted.
Still DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs said there were no plans to seek a buyer for either subsidiary. “Neither ARI nor DAAI are for sale,” Jacobs said in reply to questions.
Read the full article on the Irish Times.
07.30 - Transport chief says reforms are needed to deliver infrastructure
The government should consider further reforms to the planning system and a streamlining of public spending procedures to fast-track the delivery of infrastructure, the chief executive of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) has said.
Peter Walsh also said the agency needed multi-annual funding, ideally across a time horizon of 10 years, to line up private contractors and plan effectively for major infrastructure projects.
Read the full article by Daniel Murray here.
07.15 - Asian markets update
Japanese stocks jumped on Friday, supported by the dollar's surge against the yen, after a US trade deal with Britain fuelled hopes of progress in tariff talks with other countries.
At the same time, concerns that the limited trade agreement with London may not provide much of a blueprint for additional deals cooled optimism around the outcome of Sino-US trade talks set for Saturday in Switzerland.
Mainland blue chips started the day 0.2 per cent lower, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.2 per cent.
Japan's Nikkei and broader Topix each climbed about 1.2 per cent, with the Topix set to extend its winning streak to an 11th session, the longest run since October 2017.
Taiwan's equity benchmark advanced 1 per cent, while Australian stocks added 0.4 per cent.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was broadly flat.
07.00 - Good morning
Good morning from the Business Post. Emma Hanrahan here with you today to keep you up to date on all the latest news as it happens
Leading the Business Post website this morning is an article by Sarah Collins about the government’s plans to take some items off the EU’s €95 billion US tariff hit list. Read more here.
Elsewhere, the Financial Times leads with the story that China’s exports grew sharply in April despite Donald Trump’s “liberation” day tariffs on shipments to the US. Read the full piece here.