What Friday's papers say

IRISH TIMES

- The Irish Times leads with the inauguration of new US president Donald Trump, quoting his incoming press secretary Sean Spicer as saying that Trump's address will be "a very personal and sincere statement about his vision for the country'. Trump has said he has written the speech himself.

- The paper says seven ministers of state have said that they will resist any reduction in services at Iarnród Éireann, which has been identified as needing hundreds of millions of euro to ensure its survival.

- In business, the Irish Times says staff at AIB are in line for average pay increases of 5.5 per cent over the next two years following recommendations from the Workplace Relations Commission. AIB and the Financial Services Union have accepted the proposals.

- The paper carries an opinion piece from John FitzGerald, who says Theresa May's signal that Britain would be leaving the EU customs union is "about as bad as it gets" in terms of the economic impact on Ireland. He says this will have huge implications for the retail sector in particular.

FINANCIAL TIMES

- The Financial Times says Donald Trump's pick for US Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, appeared yesterday to reassert support for a strong dollar yesterday, adding to conflicting signals over the new administration's economic policy. On Monday, Trump said the US currency's level was too high and was preventing companies from competing with Chinese counterparts.

- The paper says a report from members of London's assembly has said the city should tackle growing traffic delays by replacing its congestion charge with a pay-per-mile scheme.

- In companies news, the FT says top Pearson shareholders are calling on the board to review John Fallon's role as chief executive after Wednesday's profit warning which led to a 30 per cent drop in the shares.

- The paper reports that a South Korean court has denied the request of prosecutors to arrest Samsung group heir-apparent and de facto head Lee Jae-yong for his alleged role in a corruption scandal poised to topple President Park Geun-hye.

IRISH INDEPENDENT

- The Irish Independent leads with a report that up to 20 towns in Cork, Galway and counties along the Dublin commuter belt will see rent caps within weeks. The paper says Housing Minister Simon Coveney is expected to reveal the new rent pressure zones before the end of the month after a review.

- The paper says there is a "major rupture" in Sinn Féin over who may be appointed as the next deputy first minister, reporting that party president Gerry Adams favours younger Mid Ulster MLA Michelle O'Neill ahead of senior MLA Conor Murphy.

- In business, the Irish Independent reports that the DAA has sought a time extension to its planning permission for a new €320m runway project at Dublin Airport, but has said the planned development timetable for the infrastructure upgrade has not changed. The runway is due to be completed in 2020.

- The paper reports that technology entrepreneur Dylan Collins is exploring a stock market flotation for his London-based SuperAwesome start-up, an online platform which makes it easy for advertisers who market to kids to comply with changing rules.

IRISH EXAMINER

- The Irish Examiner reports on a warning from Department of Finance officials that as many as 40,000 jobs could be axed, the national debt could rise by €20 billion and food exports could be hit with tariffs of up to 50 per cent as a result of a hard Brexit.

- The paper says a Luas-type line linking Northern Ireland with Donegal and Sligo is among the proposals from a group of government junior ministers on the future of the railway network.

- ESRI associate research professor Edgar Morgenroth has told the Examiner that Britain owes the EU billions of euro, but difficulty in getting MPs to back the return of the money would lead to "bitter" trade talks, the outcome of which would not be in Irish interests.

- The paper says the firm that publishes the Golden Pages returned to profit in 2015 to record pre-tax profits of €2.43m. FCR Media restructured in 2015, laying off 7 per cent of its Irish workforce.