| Thursday Newspaper Review - Irish Business News and International ...
The Irish Independent reports that One51, the diversified group led by Philip Lynch, declared its hand yesterday, stating that it had teamed up with Doyle Group, a Cork-based shipping firm, to mount a bid for ICG. The two said that their bid would value ICG at at least 20 per share, trumping an existing 18.50-per-share offer by a management team led by ICG managing director Eamonn Rothwell. One51 and the Doyle Group, who announced their plans yesterday morning, only had to wait until last night to find that the ICG independent directors had given them a place at the negotiating table. The independent directors said they had had "initial discussions" with the One51/Doyle group and postponed a series of shareholder meetings scheduled for next Thursday to consider the 18.50-per-share offer from the Rothwell group, which is called Aella.
Friday Newspaper Review - Irish Business News and International ...
The Irish Independent reports that the economy will slow sharply next year and there are serious concerns about whether the present pattern of growth can be sustained, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) says in its latest quarterly analysis. In a stark warning for politicians vying to make expensive promises for the general election, the ESRI sees growth falling from 5.4pc this year to less than 4pc next year. In a separate report, Davy Stockbrokers came in with an even gloomier forecast of 3pc next year. Both forecasts are based on a fall in house building and much slower growth in consumption once the SSIA money has been spent, mostly this year. The ESRI said the huge number of vacant houses poses particular risks. The Institute had estimated that a quarter of the extra houses built in the last four years must be vacant, but the Census showed the figure is actually 40pc.
US Stocks Fall as Inflation Gains; Banks, Energy Shares Drop
March 16 (Bloomberg) -- An unexpected surge in inflation drove U.S. stocks to their first decline in three days and erased all of last week's rebound on concern the Federal Reserve is unlikely to lower interest rates this year. American Express Co. and Citigroup Inc., whose profits rise when borrowing costs fall, sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its sixth weekly loss this year and worst start since 2003. Energy shares slid the most in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, led by Exxon Mobil Corp., as oil reached a six-week low. The 0.4 percent rise in prices paid by consumers in February offset the biggest increase in industrial production since 2005 and stirred speculation the Fed will be hampered in efforts to restore economic growth. Consumer confidence dropped to the lowest in six months, deepening concern the economy is losing momentum.
Giving Families Credit Where Credit Is Due
Every year right after Christmas millions of Americans get a little gift from the Internal Revenue Service in their mailbox. It's their 1040 income tax booklet, and every year, sadly, this unsolicited present from the IRS gets a little heftier. This year the growth of the booklet was especially noticeable; instead of a saddle-stitched binding with staples holding a few dozen pages together, the 2006 Federal Income Tax booklet has a glued spine just like the Sears catalog. The difference is that this catalog is ordering something from you. What it's ordering is a record take of more than $1 trillion in individual income tax revenue. Revenue to the U.S. Treasury from individuals was up a whopping 12.6 percent in fiscal year 2006. Did you receive a 12.6 percent salary increase last year? To make matters worse, chances are that the typical American will not be calculating this record tax liability on his or her own.
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