Breakfast Business

You may have seen adverts for the new electric car brand Polestar. Or perhaps you've seen their distinctive white container showrooms.  They're certainly making an impact on the car market here.  Polestar is owned by Volvo which itself is part of the Chinese Geely group. Speaking to Joe on the show was Jonathan Goodman, Head of Polestar Ireland & UK 

A look at today's business papers and websites with Newstalk Business Editor Joe Lynam.

Last week the cardboard and packaging giant Smurfit Kappa confirmed that it was merging with the Atlanta-based West Rock in a deal worth €10bn.  It also told us that it would be delisting from the Dublin stock exchange in another blow to Euronext. But what does the deal mean for the industry and is Smurfit tilting away from Europe and towards America? With more on this Joe spoke to Ken Bowles - the CFO of Smurfit Kappa. 

  Inflation is likely to remain stubbornly high, even next year, and any tax cuts and additional extraordinary supports for households in next month’s budget, could keep inflation higher for longer. That’s according to the Central Bank of Ireland in its quarterly report out today. Robert Kelly is the director of statistics at the Central Bank Of Ireland and Robert joined Joe this morning on the show.

A run-through of some of the business stories today with Newstalk Business Editor Joe Lynam.

From Schweppes to Orangina and from Jim Beam to Laphroaig whiskies, Suntory is one of the biggest food and beverage companies in the world. This morning Peter Harding, the Chief Executive of Suntory Europe, began by asking him about the drinks industry amid a cost of living crisis for many countries.

‘All in a Day's Work’ is a brand new campaign from the Local Enterprise Offices to encourage companies to adapt to the new fully digital world. The LEOs have 3 strands to their training programmes, entitled Lean, Green, and Digital.  Most of the supports are free and funded by Enterprise Ireland.  John Magee is the chair of the Network of LEOs joined Joe on the show this morning.

A run-through of some of the business stories today with Joe Lynam.

Bryan Habana is known for the dozens of tries he’s scored in the rugby world cups down the years but he is also the Co-Founder and Chief Client Officer at fintech firm Paymenow Group which is sweeping Africa.  He’s also over in Ireland for the FinTechNation, hosted by Fintech & Payments Association Ireland (FPAI) and he joined Joe on the show this morning.

The media and advertising groups, WPP & Media Central have been polling almost 100 Senior Irish Marketing professionals to find out what makes the sector cheer or geer.  Some CMOs think they should sit at board level while others complain of a relentless workload.  They also worry about how best to promote their brands and thankfully radio is in the top 3 channels for advertising. Speaking to Joe this morning was Jonathan Conlon, COO of Group M.

A look at today's business papers and markets with Joe Lynam and Mike O’Sullivan from Unio Wealth Managers. 

We’ve been told that AI will be all-pervasive and all over the place.  That includes space now too.  The AI company Ubotica Technologies has signed up with IBM to use its cloud system to send back data that Ubotica will be collecting in space.  How that data will be used is unclear yet.  But maybe Gavin Shorten from IBM can help? who joined Emmet on the show with more details on this.

Defined benefit pensions are also known as final salary schemes.  They are the gold standard in retirement savings because they must pay a fixed generous sum based on your pay when you retire.   They're also very expensive to fund because we’re all living much longer. Many companies are hoping to offload their DB pension schemes and Irish life is one of the biggest customers  Shane O'Farrell, Irish Life Corporate Business spoke to Emmet this morning.

A look at today's business papers and websites with Emmet Oliver.

In the wake of the price cuts announced by energy suppliers earlier this month, almost two-thirds of Irish people (64pc) are calling for at least one more energy credit for everyone to be factored into the upcoming 2024 Budget.   Marian Ryan, Taxback.com consumer tax manager joined Emmet this morning on the show.

Cheaper insurance should help combat taxi shortages across the country  so says Insuremytaxi.ie   Speaking to Emmet with more on this was Managing Director Jonathan Hehir.

A run-through of some of the business stories today with Emmet Oliver.

Sustainable behaviours continue to be a priority for Irish consumers as almost 7 in 10 people in Ireland purchase sustainable products and the same number view climate change as an “emergency” that’s according to a new Deloitte survey  With more on the findings of the report, Emmet spoke to Glen Gillard, Partner and Head of Sustainability, Deloitte Ireland. 

Strong jobs growth is expected across the financial services sector over the next three years.   That's according to a new report carried out by Financial Services Ireland.     To discuss the topic in more detail was Director of Financial Services Ireland, Patricia Callan. 

A run-through of some of the business stories today with Emmet Oliver.