Shares in betting services group Paddy Power-Betfair dropped a further 4% yesterday after it posted first-half earnings which fell short of analyst expectations.

Dublin-headquartered builders merchanting and DIY goods provider Grafton Group has continued its international expansion drive with its fifth acquisition in the last 12 months.

Car sales, boosted by the recent introduction of the ‘152’ registration plates, drove retail sales volumes up nearly 12% last month reaching a 10-year high in the process.

A subsidiary of US private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management has bought a significant proportion of Royal Bank of Scotland’s remaining Irish property loan portfolio for £1.1bn (€1.38bn), a near 80% discount on the combined gross value of the assets.

Consumer spending volumes grew by over 6% during the first half of 2014 — the fastest rate for seven years — fuelling expectations of a jump of between 1% and 2% for the full year.

Irish-Swiss bakery giant Aryzta is set to further expand its US operations by acquiring flatbread specialist Pitapan in what is widely being viewed as a modest bolt-on buy.

The volume of residential property sales jumped by 14%, on a year-on-year basis, during the first quarter of the year, according to a new study.

Motorists are set to be hit with a 10c price increase for toll road usage from the beginning of next year, in line with rising inflation.

House prices may have fallen as much as 68% in real terms since the height of the boom, according to a report which suggests the market has finally bottomed out.

BUILDERS’ merchants group Grafton is being linked with more acquisition movement as consolidation in the international merchanting sector heats up.

IRELAND is set to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the falling value of the euro, according to Goodbody Stockbrokers’ team of economists.

THE Irish Nationwide Building Society (INBS) last night announced Gerry McGinn as its new chief executive.

INDEPENDENT News and Media’s jobcutting and restructuring programme aimed at making the company a low-cost provider in all its market is expected to boost profits this year and the years ahead.

SHARES in builders providers Grafton Group Plc rose by more than 5% yesterday after the company said profits for the first six months of the year would be “materially ahead of market expectations”.