MORE EXPECT ECONOMY TO DISIMPROVE THAN IMPROVE – The Irish Independent reports on European research which shows that two thirds of Irish people think Ireland's economic situation will decline, compared to one fifth who see it improving. The figures mark an improvement in confidence for Irish citizens, however the country is still far less confident about its current position than the rest of Europe. The latest Eurobarometer survey found that just 7% of Irish people felt the country's economy was in good health, down 1%c since last year and well below the EU average of 26%, itself a poor result. The results, compiled using responses from 33,000 EU citizens, are more dramatic when compared to Sweden and Germany, where more than three-quarters of those surveyed were confident in their economy. Ireland barely escaped the EU bottom five. There are now six countries where less than 5% of the population are positive about their economy: Greece, Spain, Slovenia, Portugal, Bulgaria and Cyprus. The big differences evident between EU countries have tended to widen since last year, says the newspaper.
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COMPANIES TURNING TO BOND FUNDING – The Irish Examiner reports that European companies are raising more money through corporate bonds than through bank loans for the first time, according to the ratings agency Fitch. Over the first six months of this year, a total of €257bn in bonds were issued compared with €238bn in bank loans. For the first time in a decade, it looks as if bank loans taken out by European companies will be less that €500bn for this year. Traditionally European firms had a heavy reliance on bank lending to raise funds. The ratio was two-thirds loans and one-third through the capital markets. In the US, it was the opposite, with corporates raising two-thirds of their funding needs from the capital markets.
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IRELAND NOT A TAX HAVEN SAYS OECD HEAD – The Irish Times reports on comments by the head of the tax division of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, who has said Ireland is not a tax haven. The comments from Pascal Saint-Amans come in the wake of accusations made in parliamentary committees in both the US and Britain that large global companies use Ireland as part of their efforts to pay minimal amounts of corporation taxes in any jurisdiction. Speaking via video-link to the Oireachtas joint subcommittee on global taxation, Mr Saint-Amans added, however, that Ireland could take unilateral action to curb avoidance by, for instance, having stricter rules on corporation tax for companies formally resident in Ireland. He also praised the Irish authorities for their “very active” efforts in supporting changes to multilateral taxation rules which would lessen incidences of companies avoiding the payment of corporation tax. Mr Saint-Amans said the objective of the new rules was to ensure as far as is possible that profit taxes are levied in the jurisdictions in which the profits are generated.
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EU UNEASE OVER US BANK DATA ACCESS – EU officials have expressed unease at US regulatory demands to probe the records, books and emails of Europe’s biggest financial companies, reports The Financial Times. The dispute over investigative powers to police complex markets has taken on new significance in the wake of the US spying scandal, the newspaper says, which has made European officials increasingly sensitive. Senior officials from both sides have been working on ground rules for conducting cross-border data requests, however it is reported that the Securities Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission are unwilling to cede the right to obtain material directly from overseas derivatives dealers or hedge funds registered in the US.
