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Morning business news - February 17

Morning business news - February 17
Morning business news - February 17

Tomorrow sees the start of the lenten season. It's not normally an occasion that's marked on the business news but this year, the seasonal Trócaire box is undergoing something of an innovation.
 
Catrina Sheridan, Director of Fundraising with Trócaire, explained that the box would now be available digitally via an app that can be downloaded from all the main app stores.

"It will continue to be distributed in its paper format, but as well as that it will be going digital from tomorrow," she said. 

"We've taken the tradition of the box and put it online. We've a digitally savvy nation. The idea is to take the solidarity and support and put it into the online sphere."

Ms Sheridan explained that the traditional elements of the lenten campaign were being incorporated into the digital format.

"Many people fast or give up something at lent. We've taken those elements and incorporated them into the lenten box. They can share it with friends, family and work colleagues and set targets. We also give information around the work we do to draw awareness to the assistance we provide to 3.4 million people in 20 countries."

Over €8 million in contributions are collected each year via the Trócaire box collection. The charity hopes to grow that this year with its new innovation.

Catrina Sheridan said Trócaire had fared quite well during the downturn and subsequent controversies that beset the sector here.

"It has been challenging, especially around the end of 2013. We experienced a huge decline in trust but we can see that start to return,” she said.

“We welcome the idea of the charity regulator. It's important for Irish people to see that the donations they make are properly governed and go to good use," she concluded.

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Dublin-listed Dragon Oil has announced a total dividend per share of 36 US cents for 2014. 

That represents 9% growth year-on-year.

The oil company announced revenue of just below $1.1bn for the year - a 4% increase on last year.

Profit was 27% higher at $650.5m.

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Asian stock markets were lower and the euro fell against the dollar after those Greek bailout negotiations ended without agreement yesterday.

The single currency fell to under $1.135 from Monday's high of $1.143 - but it's still above the eleven year low of $1.11 reached at the end of January, signalling an expectation among currency traders that the situation is not irretrievable.

Any deal between Athens and its euro zone has to be approved by parliament in each EU member state, so that makes a solution even more urgent in the coming days.

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The Board of the oil and gas exploration firm Petroceltic has won the support of three corporate governance groups ahead of next week's extraordinary general meeting of shareholders. 

The biggest shareholder, Worldview Capital Management, is looking to replace chief executive Brian O'Cathain and have its own representative placed on the board.

The corporate governance groups are recommending that shareholders vote against or abstain in the vote removing the CEO and vote against the Worldview appointees.

The meeting takes place next Wednesday.

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Low oil prices could boost output in the euro zone and US, according to a new study from PwC, but it could take a while before the full effects are felt.

Economists at PwC assume that the average price of a barrel of oil in 2015 is likely to be around $55 - that would be around 50% lower than in June last.

The study says householders might have to wait for oil price cuts to be passed down the supply chain to consumers.

Motorists will have noticed however that car fuel prices have started to rise again after falling in recent months.

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And lower oil prices are expected to have kept the rate of inflation in the UK below half a percent for the second month in a row.

The official figure is due out today which will be closely watched after the rate dipped to half a percent in December - well below the target 2%.

The governor of the Bank of England warned last week that inflation could fall further in the short term and he said he was prepared to cut interest rates again if needed.