The Republic has doubled its second-hand car imports to 100,000 in the past two years, while new car sales have slumped in “a clear and dramatic effect” from the Brexit slide in sterling, according to the Marketing Institute of Ireland and the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.

A home renovation scheme described as a “boon for the construction industry” should serve as inspiration for the Government to introduce a bigger stimulus to generate house building, an industry leader has said.

Irish consumers spent over €340m via debit card transactions outside of the Republic, during November alone, as shoppers continued to look online for value and avail of a weaker post-Brexit referendum sterling.

A third of Irish marketing professionals believe Britain leaving the EU will have a negative impact on their company’s turnover this year.

Marketing executives are receiving wage increases, with lucrative bonuses being paid to staff in industries that are benefiting most from the economic recovery, a major survey has found.

Consumers are more buoyant now than they were even in the so-called ‘boom’ years of 2006 and 2007, claims a new survey.

An increase in consumer confidence is being reflected in public spending, according to new research, carried out by the Marketing Institute of Ireland and Michael Smurfit business school.

Increasing consumer confidence and a greater availability of credit are contributing to the tentative recovery of consumer spending, according to figures released yesterday.

Rosanne inherited a love of baking from her mother. After college, she worked in the fashion industry, in fashion retail management, until 2011, when she accepted redundancy. Meanwhile, her husband Jay was out at college three nights a week, leaving Rosanne alone and bored.

New research shows consumer confidence reached a six-year peak in September, returning to its highest levels since the financial crisis.

Consumer confidence has returned to boom levels, according to the Consumer Market Monitor which found that consumer confidence has returned to levels last seen in 2006.

Consumer spending levels are set to fall by 2% as a whole for 2012 according to latest forecasts.

THE economic downturn has made consumers better money managers with the majority thinking more carefully about purchases.

A CLEAR policy framework is needed from the Government if the country is to become competitive on the science, technology and innovation (STI) front.

THERE was a drop of over one third in new mortgages in the first quarter of the year — despite more than €1.2 billion worth of loans being given to 7,000 first-time buyers in the first three months of 2010.

CONSUMER confidence in Ireland is back in line with the European average as house sales increase threefold and shoppers start spending again.

FOUR in 10 adults are completely debt free as consumers save nearly four times as much as they did at the height of the boom.

Irish consumers are saving nearly four times as much now as they did at the height of the economic boom.

CROSS-BORDER shopping cost the Irish exchequer €810 million last year, equal to 3.5% of the retail market.

A WOMAN who claimed she was given a “dummy job” and a damp basement to work in after returning from a career break at Iarnród Éireann has been awarded €189,000, the biggest award ever made by the Equality Tribunal.

SHOPPERS are relying less on plastic and switching to cash as credit card spending plunged 15% over the last year.

Credit card use in Ireland has fallen back to levels last seen four years ago, according to new figures from the Marketing Institute of Ireland and the Smurfit Graduate Business School at UCD.

CONSUMER markets remained very weak in quarter two of 2009 but pub sales fared better than most, a new report has found.

The Irish economy will continue to struggle until the second half of 2010, when unemployment is predicted to reach 15%, according to the Central Bank’s latest forecast, published today.

Greencore is moving ahead with its €500m plans to redevelop the former sugar plant in Mallow, County Cork and have appointed a leading businessman to head up the massive project.

Bank of Ireland Private Banking today announced the appointment of Kevin Quinn to director with responsibility for Investments & Pensions.

O’SULLIVAN PR announced yesterday the appointment of Ann-Marie O’Sullivan as managing director.

MARIA MAHON, the recently retired chief executive of IrishJobs.ie, has been elected as chairman of the Marketing Institute of Ireland.

Aer Arann, which provides the Cork/Dublin air service, has been presented with the Sean F. Lemass Award by the Marketing Institute of Ireland.

A SMALL Irish company has signed deals worth €2 million to provide software training in China.

Brendan Nevin, director of strategy and marketing with Bank of Ireland, has been elected chairman of the Marketing Institute of Ireland.

Franchising has played little part in the Irish DIY sector, until now. Agribusiness Correspondent RAY RYAN reports on the man trying to mix the best of traditional hardware stores with the range and choice offered by big business.