Economy slowing but still has room to flourish

ONE headline yesterday said the value of the pension reserve fund fell 3.8%. It could also have said the fund was up by 1.3% since the beginning of 2006.

In an Irish context it seems there is never an in-between. If the economy is booming, they say it can’t or won’t last. House prices have to burst and the pay deals will eventually spell ruin for the Irish economy.

Since this economy started to boom in the mid-1990s, analysts — and indeed the general populace, — have been looking for the catch.