The FTSE 100 Index has closed above 7,500 for the first time as higher-than-forecast inflation data and confidence over Britain's prospects under a Tory government drove stocks higher.

It’s a long way from avocados we were reared, but this year our shopping baskets will be full of them.

Housing groups have asked why fresh rent restrictions proposed by Housing Minister Simon Coveney are not more stringent.

A gauge of UK inflation expectations climbed to its highest level of 2016, as the country’s Brexit decision and a slump in sterling helped push retail prices up in July faster than analysts had forecast.

The rate of inflation fell slightly in March.

China’s consumer price rose the most since mid-2014 last month as food costs jumped amid the week-long Lunar New Year holidays, where millions binge on roast pork, duck, seafood, and vegetables.

Sterling fell to its lowest level against the dollar since 2009 but was little changed against the euro at almost 76.5 pence after Bank of England governor Mark Carney yesterday signalled a boost to UK interest rates is still some way off.

Irish insurance companies will need to hike the costs of car insurance even more if they are return to profitability any time soon, a senior analyst at rating agency Standard & Poor’s said yesterday.

The CSO said it will consider next year publishing a new range of statistics measuring the cost of living for different income and family groups.

Motor insurance costs and private rents have soared in the past year, even as the prices of many other goods and services have fallen sharply, the latest inflation figures show.

How does a night of ghost hunting with Cork’s Paranormal Investigators strike you?

Interest rates look set to stay on hold at 0.5% today when the Bank of England announces its first post-election policy decision.

Interest rates are expected to be left on hold when Bank of England officials announce their last policy decision before the British General Election tomorrow.

Bank of England policy makers voted unanimously to keep interest rates on hold this month for the first time since July amid concerns about low inflation, minutes of their latest meeting revealed today.

Britain’s government should stop using a discredited measure of inflation for selling index-linked bonds which is costing taxpayers billions a year, an official review said yesterday.

The Bank of England left interest rates on hold today as the timing of a first hike which had once been expected this year recedes into 2015.

Inflation figures in the UK have under-estimated the decline in living standards, with the poorest Britons seeing a “staggering” 15% decline in their incomes in the past year, according to a report.

Inflation in the UK is expected to remain below the Bank of England’s 2% target when official figures for August are published tomorrow.

Inflation in the UK fell to 1.6% in July as fashion stores launched summer discounts and fierce competition between supermarkets helped keep a lid on food prices for the longest stretch in a decade.

The Oireachtas finance committee has clarified that homeowners will be able to claim for tax relief of 13.5% on home improvement works if the total spent exceeds €5,000.

Ireland’s consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.1% in July to stand 0.7% higher than a year earlier, with drops in clothing and furnishings prices balancing out rises in food and education, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office.

Economists have warned of a deepening of the “two tier” divide in the housing market as residential prices in Dublin rose once more year-on-year while those outside the capital fell once again.

Weak consumer demand is expected to contain Irish inflation in the coming months with global energy and food prices the only risks to increasing the cost of living for Irish consumers.

The public may be relieved that consumer prices are not rising rapidly, but business body Isme believes stagnant prices and rising wages are eroding companies’ margins.

Inflation fell by 0.4% over the month of November, although prices have risen by 0.8% on year-ago levels.

For some the Croke Park deal epitomises all that is wrong in this country.

O’Callaghan Properties are looking for up to €25m for the 180-bed River Lee hotel they built in 2006 on the old Jurys Hotel site in Cork city.

Cash-strapped families face higher prices for everyday items like food and clothes as inflation rose three times faster than expected last month.

Inflation has shot up much quicker than expected, according to the CSO, and hard-pressed consumers can expect to see their buying power decline further as the year draws to a close.

The rate of inflation was unchanged over the past, latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show, but prices have risen by 1.8% since the beginning of the year.

A damning report on the fiscal treaty and its new rules intended to have eurozone countries run close to balanced budgets has been released by Davy Stockbrokers.

The European Central Bank and the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee meet this week to review monetary policy operations in their respective economies.

A SLIGHT drop in consumer prices, particularly mortgage costs and the price of food and clothing, pushed the annual rate of inflation down to 2.5% in December, the first time in four months that inflation slowed.

THE annual rate of inflation crept up to 2.9% in November as consumer prices stayed largely flat during the month.

Asian stock markets struggled but European shares advanced today as fears that Italy could become the next domino to fall in Europe’s debt crisis were muted by Greece edging back from the brink.

Inflation in the UK is expected to hit a three-year high today.

MENTAL health campaigner John McCarthy has criticised a statement from Ireland’s psychiatrists defending the quality of the country’s mental health services and its role in advocating for mental health patients.

The rate of inflation continued to climb last month, official figures revealed today, as utility bill hikes hit a two-year high and clothing costs saw their biggest increase on record.