Glen Dimplex cuts, no commercial property recovery before 2027 and making the most of AI in business

Manufacturing group Glen Dimplex is to seek 300 redundancies in the next two years. As Ellen O’Regan reports, the group said although “there will be job losses” the €50 million investment in reconfiguring its operations in Ireland and continental Europe would result in overall employment here increasing by 20 per cent to more than 1,000 staff by 2029.

More bad news looks in store for the commercial property market, with no recovery visible until 2027, according a new report from BNP Paribas Real Estate. Ian Curran has the details.

In the Interview, Patricia Scanlon, who is the Government’s ambassador on AI, outlines how to harness its power.

Tara Mines, which has been effectively shut since last summer, lost about €65 million last year, its parent company said, as management continues to negotiate with unions over job losses at the Co Meath mine. As I report, the mine’s parent company CEO Mikael Staffas pointedly warned on Thursday he could end up shutting the mine down permanently.

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There was no “seismic surge” in retail spending in the Dublin economy in advance of Christmas, in part because custom from US tourists contracted sharply, the latest MasterCard SpendingPulse study said. Laura Slattery reports.

In his column, John FitzGerald outlines why customers would win in an all island electricity market.

This week Agenda assesses the state of the hotel industry today, and why investors are hovering of the sector.

More than one in four homeowners expect they will still be paying back their mortgage past the age when most people retire, according to a new survey. Dominic Coyle reports that more than one in four homeowners expect they will still be paying back their mortgage past the age when most people retire, according to a new survey. 70. The figure is highest among those who are currently over the age of 55.

The board of Ires Reit, the State’s largest private landlord, has been backed by corporate governance adviser Glass Lewis in a report recommending that shareholders reject proposals brought by activist investor Vision Capital. Ciara O’Brien and Ian report.

Google’s efforts to catch up with Microsoft in artificial intelligence continued as it rebranded its bot to Gemini from Bard. Ciara has the details.

Ellen also reports that people living in Dublin had the highest disposable income in the State in 2021, 14.7 per cent higher than the national average and up 3.8 per cent since 2020. The average disposable income for people living in Dublin was €27,958 in 2021, compared to a State average of €24,376, according to Central Statistics Office figures.

Grant Thornton’s Irish operation is managing the leases on 740 aircraft for private investors following a deal done last month. Barry O’Halloran reports that the firm’s Dublin office has been developing an aviation services business since 2016 under partner and head of division Tim O’Connell. He confirmed on Thursday that Grant Thornton recently signed a contract to manage leases on 390 aircraft for a US private equity investment firm.

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