BUSINESS CHIEFS TRY TO STRESS THE POSITIVE - IBEC's chief executives conference is taking place at the National Convention Centre in Dublin this morning.
This year the CEOs are concentrating on the resilience of Irish companies, and their hopes for the recovery. Their message is that business leaders have confidence in Ireland's future.
IBEC's president Leo Crawford is the chief executive of BWG Group, which owns the Irish Spar and Mace franchises. He said today's conference was about restoring some balance to the economic debate, and that some positive economic indicators were now emerging.
But Mr Crawford said confidence could be restored fully only when consumers had certainty about what Budget measures were in prospect.
Mike Glennon, of timber group Glennon Brothers, which converts logs into products for the construction industry and the packaging industry. He said his company had been forced to seek out new markets after the collapse in construction in Ireland. He said the firm now exported two-thirds of its products, a reversal from the situation during the building boom.
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CURRENCIES - The euro is trading at $1.40 and 87.32p sterling.
