US tariffs on pharmaceutical imports could hit profits at Irish banks, the Sunday Independent reports. The newspaper quotes analysts at British investment bank, Barclays, warning that Irish lenders are more exposed to US tariffs and falling interest rates.
European Central Bank rate hikes boosted Irish banks’ profits since 2022, but the EU’s finance watchdog could cut borrowing charges faster if US import charges weaken Europe’s economy, the analysts say.
Banks could face a hit of up to 32 per cent in a “severe” in a worst-case scenario, or 7 per cent with more modest tariffs, says the Independent.
Xerotech fails to find buyer
Liquidators have failed to find a buyer for battery manufacturer Xerotech, according to the Sunday Times. Luke Charleton and Alan Large of EY were appointed as liquidators to the Galway business in February after it failed to close a crucial fundraising.
They told the newspaper that they were unable to close any deal for the company’s trade and assets after an “extensive process for the potential sale of Xerotech”. EY also confirmed that it had hired intellectual property firm, Metis Partners, to sell Xerotech’s “intellectual property, patents, software and certain specialised equipment”.
Fine Gael TDs back ‘tourist tax’
Fine Gael TDs favour proposals by Dublin’s four local authorities to tax tourists staying in the city’s hotels to generate cash for its councils, says the Business Post. James Geoghegan, TD for Dublin Bay South and former lord mayor of the capital, told the newspaper that he backed the proposal. “There should be a moderate tax and we should work with hoteliers to introduce that,” he said.
Naoise Ó Muirí, Dublin Bay North, noted that there was support for the levy “within the party”. He cautioned that politicians would have to “sell” the notion to the tourist industry. The newspaper previously reported that senior party figures, including Minister for Tourism Peter Burke, opposed the measure.
Office block owners take 75% haircut
The value of a Dublin office block leased by Facebook parent, Meta, appears set to slump by 75 per cent, the Sunday Times reports. The Beckett Building in the city’s north dockland was put on the market with a €35 million guide price in May last year in a receiver sale.
However, the paper says it has now gone sale agreed for a figure understood to be about €25 million, well short of the €101 million South Korean financial group KB Kookmin Bank paid for it in 2018.
Planning bill of €525m
The planning bill for Britain’s proposed Lower Thames Crossing, a tunnel connecting Essex and Kent, is more than £450 million (€525 million), according to the Observer.
The British Sunday dubs the project “the poster child for planning purgatory”, saying hundreds of millions have been spent on the planning process alone since the project was first proposed 16 years ago.
Britain’s Labour Party government gave it the green light last month, sparking a likely confrontation with environmentalists and local groups. “Each challenge slows the process, and judicial reviews remain huge blockers for infrastructure developments,” the newspaper notes.
