Employers group Ibec says the Irish economy will outperform the rest of Europe and will grow by 5.7% this year. Its latest Quarterly Economic Outlook says the recovery "finally" reached the domestic economy with unemployment falling, investment increasing and the Irish consumer looking ahead with more confidence.
Ibec's chief economist Fergal O'Brien says that the recent slide in world oil prices is a significant stimulus for the Irish economy and that every $10 fall in the price of a barrel of oil results in an additional €100m spending power for Irish consumers. €3.5 billion is spent on fuel costs by Irish consumers. Mr O'Brien says petrol and diesel prices have already fallen at the pumps, while home heating oil prices are also cheaper. Mr O'Brien says the increase in spending power is starting to spill across different sectors of the economy, and what started as an export-led recovery has become an investment recovery. He points out that construction workers are returning to work in significant numbers, while spending in the shops is also improving. Up to recently the recovery had been confined to Dublin, but it is now spreading across the country. The economist also noted that jobs have come early in the cycle of the recovery, adding that the most striking feature this year is the conversion to full time job creation - and across a good spread of the economy.
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MORNING BRIEFS - Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have blamed the oil price fall on producers outside OPEC and reaffirmed their stance to keep output at current levels. Saudi Arabia's oil minister said he was "100% not pleased" with the near 50% slide in crude oil prices since the middle of June, but said it was a lack of non-OPEC co-operation that was a key contributor to the sharp decline. Speaking at the same gathering, the United Arab Emirates' energy minister said one of the principal reasons for the price falls was "the irresponsible production of some producers from outside OPEC". Global energy forecasters are expecting less demand for OPEC oil in 2015 amid a rise in US shale production and a slowdown in demand in Europe and Asia.
*** Average wholesale gas prices for December are down 25% compared to this time last year - according to Vayu's latest Wholesale Energy Market Report. It says this is due to consistently weak demand, strong supplies and a positive storage outlook. It says demand remains low and is currently 11% below seasonal norms due to warmer than expected weather conditions and less gas consumption for heating and power generation.
