Personal consumption accounts for 27% of Irish GDP.  Stripping out the multinational sector, that figure zooms to around 60% of Modified domestic demand.  That’s bigger than any one sector in the economy and so the mood of the consumer really matters.  The latest survey for the Credit Unions suggests that the consumer is in ‘watch and worry’ mode given the bigger geopolitical turbulence out there. 

The economist Austin Hughes compiles the report for the Credit Unions and joined Joe this morning.

Elis is a company that provides the garments and gowns to prevent any human matter from getting into the clean room for giants such as Intel.   His garments don't shed nor have any loose fibres and are cleaned after each use. 

Bernard Flynn of Elis, Cleanroom and he is the Repak Green Business Person Of The Month for September. 

Kate English - Deloitte looks at today's business news headlines along with Joe Lynam.

Thursday's business news headlines along with Joe Lynam.

Although less onerous than feared, the new 15% tariff regime represents a clear deterioration in Ireland’s trading environment.  Despite that, Irish growth as measured by Modified Domestic Demand is set to be a robust 3.8% this year but slip back to 2.9% in 2026.  They are among the views in the latest quarterly economy report from the ESRI think tank, which also has a deep dive into Ireland’s pharmaceutical sector whose Irish corporation tax receipts could be in jeopardy. 

All to discuss with Dr Conor O’Toole from the ESRI. 

Dell is worried that Ireland is set to miss the boat when it comes to providing the infrastructure for the AI revolution including grid connections, water supply and even good old fashioned planning permission.

This is a stark warning from one of the biggest tech companies in the world and comes as corporate America invests a trillion dollars on AI infrastructure and nuclear powered data centres. But do we have to copy them? 

Joe discusses this further with Jason Ward, EMEA North  Vice-President and Managing Director of Dell Technologies Ireland. 

In 2023 the Supreme Court made a key ruling in the employment space which makes it much tougher for freelancers to have arms length contracts with the company from which they earn most of their income. Now the Revenue has set until January for employers to get their contract labour onto regular PAYE contracts. It’s a big shakeup especially for so-called gig economy workers.

All to discuss with Deirdre Malone, Head of Employment Law at EY Ireland. 

Last month Donald Trump scrapped the old de minimus rule for parcels coming into America, which allowed small packages to arrive tariff-free for US consumers.  Now the EU is set to follow suit and make it far tougher for individual parcels to arrive tax-free into Europe. 

But British exporters will also be affected and what will it mean for European Consumers?  All to discuss with Dr Anna Jerzewska Global Customs Director at the freight forwarding company DSV. 

Wednesday's business news with Joe Lynam.

We are exactly two weeks out from the budget, and although the leaking of tax or spending measures hasn't begun in earnest yet, we’re starting to get a sense that this won't be like the last one ie a pre-election giveaway.  So what can we expect in 2026 and what could that mean for companies? And which sectors can expect or even deserve the most support? 

Speaking to Joe was Daryl Hanberry the Head of Tax and Legal with Deloitte Ireland which hosts its “Global Shared Services Conference” this week.