Mitsuru Kitano, the new Japanese ambassador to Ireland, was hopeful of a good performance from his side as he opened his residence to host his first official event last week.

Meeting up with Phil Hogan in Dublin in recent days, there was clearly an awareness of the importance and challenges his new portfolio of EU Trade Commissioner carried, not least because of the tense time in Brexit negotiations, but also because of the instability and tension in global trade.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s latest gambit to prevent any close scrutiny of his Brexit strategy by the British parliament, by closing down the shop for five weeks, should not blind either the EU or Irish negotiators to the enormity of trade disruption that will arise from a hard exit of the UK at the end of October.

Irish shares and Government bond yields fell today as a political manoeuvre by UK prime minister Boris Johnson was seen as boosting the chances of a crash-out Brexit at Halloween and an early British election.

While pessimism grows that the UK will remain stuck on the 'backstop' and Halloween will bring our worst nightmare of a crash out of the EU, there is reason for optimism that in these turbulent times there is a silver lining for Ireland ‘s traders.

More and more companies are finding profit in exporting services, and several trends ensure that these exports will grow rapidly.

The start of any European Commission brings with it a sense of hope, a sense of new beginnings and new possibilities and a feeling curiosity in the face of the unknown personalities taking up the lead roles for the 27 countries of Europe.

The Vietnam free trade deal signed two days after the EU Mercosur agreement, to much less fanfare, has substantial opportunities for Ireland's exporters and - in particular - the farming sector, who look set to lose some market under the former deal.

The EU’s trade surplus with the US reached a record level in 2018, increasing the risk that US President Donald Trump’s annoyance could ignite a fresh trade war.

Companies cool on foreign direct investment calls, writes John Whelan.

Companies cool on foreign direct investment calls, writes John Whelan.