Retail spending boom, Mary Harney joins KPMG, and Fingleton inquiry ends

Irish households will spend an average of €2,800 in shops this December, about €940 more than any other month of this year, according to a study of the festive season by business lobby group Ibec. Peter Hamilton has the seasonal details.

Former tánaiste Mary Harney, who retired from politics in 2011, has been appointed by accounting firm KPMG to its public interest committee, where she will help oversee certain aspects of its work. Ciarán Hancock reports on her new role.

State companies generated almost €1.4 billion in operating profits last year and paid €261 million in dividends to the exchequer, according to data from NewERA, the agency that oversees these entities for the Government. Charlie Taylor goes through the numbers.

A Central Bank of Ireland inquiry into former Irish Nationwide Building Society chief executive Michael Fingleton has been terminated due to his ill health. Peter Hamilton reports.

African veteran’s devotion to Tullow stock may make him its saviour

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Kildare Village owners to challenge planning permission refusal

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Will living in the country make you richer or poorer?

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Christmas tech: the high-end smartphones

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Kilkenny Group, the Nassau Street-based retailer, has claimed that plans by Larry Goodman and his family to demolish a group of historic buildings in Dublin to make way for a new office development "would further jeopardise the city's retail environment". Gordon Deegan has seen their objection.

In his weekly column, Chris Johns reflects on the importance of bonds in our lives and says governments should use the current muted mood in the markets to help finance more 'green' infrastructure.

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