As the winner between the two Tory leadership candidates is announced, Brexit remains the key battleground for the next UK prime minister.

The money spent by Irish buyers of second-hand cars imported from the UK doubled in the first half of this year, compared to the same period in 2018.

Sterling fell sharply yesterday after the Bank of England raised interest rates for the first time in more than a decade but said it sees only gradual rises ahead.

Analysts have hailed ECB head Mario Draghi as his handling of a cutback in euro crisis measures helped relieve European exporters, boosted European stock- markets, pushed down Irish bond yields, while reassuring there would be no early hike in interest rates.