Today sees the release of March data from the Ulster Bank Northern Ireland PMI®. The latest report – produced for Ulster Bank by IHS Markit – pointed to weaker rises in both output and new orders at Northern Ireland companies. Continue reading
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Ulster fry price up 2.8% in past year and 22% in 10 years
Ulster Bank had its annual Pre-Balmoral Show breakfast this morning. It discussed and outlined some of the key issues around the performance and outlook for the agri-food sector. Continue reading
Cash flow pressures, recruitment difficulties and uncertainty for 3rd sector
Cash flow pressures, recruitment difficulties and uncertainty linked to Northern Ireland’s political situation are significantly impacting on the third sector’s ability to deliver key services, a new report reveals.
Sharp rise in private sector activity at start of 2018
The Ulster Bank NI PMI for January 2018 is out today. It shows a pick-up in growth momentum in the Northern Ireland private sector. Business activity rose at the fastest pace since December 2016 . A sharper increase in input costs was also recorded, however, and companies continued to raise their prices at a marked pace. Continue reading
Sharp rise in new orders supports further growth of activity
Today sees the release of October data from the Ulster Bank Northern Ireland PMI®. The latest report – produced for Ulster Bank by IHS Markit – indicated that the private sector remained firmly in growth territory, despite rates of expansion in output and new orders easing from the previous month. Firms continued to take on extra staff at a solid pace. Meanwhile, input costs rose sharply again and the rate of output price inflation quickened. Continue reading
New orders rise at fastest pace in year-to-date
Today sees the release of September data from the Ulster Bank Northern Ireland PMI®. The latest report – produced for Ulster Bank by IHS Markit – signalled a further sharp increase in new orders at Northern Ireland companies, supporting the fastest rise in business activity in the year-to-date. The rate of job creation also accelerated. Continue reading
Charities fear direct rule
Charity leaders have expressed significant concern about the current political situation in Northern Ireland and the prospect of direct rule. Continue reading
Northern Ireland’s television and online habits revealed by Ofcom
Ofcom has revealed Northern Ireland’s television and online habits in their latest Communications Market Report. The report, released on 3rd August 2017, provides an overview of communications services across Northern Ireland and monitors key trends in the availability and take-up of digital services across the United Kingdom.
Research was undertaken and included a face-to-face survey of 3,743 respondents aged 16+ in the UK, with 493 interviews being conducted in Northern Ireland across a range of ages, socio-economic groups, geographic locations and gender.
Ulster Bank & CO3 3rd Sector Index: Charities hit by political impasse
The political impasse has been hitting third sector organisations hard, a new report suggests.
The Ulster Bank & CO3 3rd Sector Index points to a near-doubling in the number of charities reporting a reduction in their government funding – from 17% last quarter to 32% now. Continue reading
Rate of job creation hits 13 month high
Today sees the release of May data from the Ulster Bank Northern Ireland PMI®. The latest report – produced for Ulster Bank by IHS Markit – pointed to a pick-up in new order growth during May, supporting a further solid increase in output. The rate of job creation also accelerated as firms responded to current workloads and positive expectations around future new work. Meanwhile, both input costs and output prices rose at slower rates than in April. Continue reading