Breakfast Business with Joe Lynam

Kildare has the 3rd highest GDP per head in the country and plays host to some of the State's more important companies, including Intel and Hewlett Packard. It’s also the home of horse breeding and the Punchestown racing festival which starts this week. But do these sporting events make any difference to a local economy and how do counties generate an economic identity distinct from the national one? Áine Mangan from Into Kildare joined Joe Lynam on the show.

We’re approaching the 4-month mark since the introduction of the new Autoenrolment scheme, now known as MyFuture Funds. The pension savings scheme obliges workers on lower wages to start saving for their retirement by deducting a small amount from their salaries, which is topped up by their employers and the State. Although Ireland was one of the last countries in Europe to introduce such a scheme, it’s a big undertaking, and we don't yet know what the official take-up has been. It comes as the government is hoping to get us to save less and invest more through a proposed new Savings & Investment scheme. Shane O'Farrell is Director of Employer Solutions with Irish Life and joined Joe Lynam on the show this morning.

Friday's business news review with Joe Lynam and Kathleen Brooks from XTB.

The German outlet New Yorker will open its first store in Ireland in the Jervis shopping centre in Dublin in a few weeks. It comes as consumers start to think twice about luxury spending amid this energy crisis. All to discuss with Maeve Foley, Senior Director with Pradera Asset Managers which owns the Jervis Centre.

Despite an energy shock, rising costs, geopolitical threats, rising inflation and probably rate hikes, 83% of Irish SMEs are still optimistic about the year ahead and plan to invest more. That’s the somewhat surprising view of the latest Confidence tracker from Bibby Financial. Joe discusses these findings with Mark O’Rourke, MD of Bibby Financial Services.

Friday's business news review with Joe Lynam and Aidan Donnelly from Davys.

The controversial EU Pay transparency Directive was due to come into force in June but it looks like that won't now be met. Research from Aon says that only 6% of Irish employers are ready for the new Directive at the moment. To discuss further with Joe was Dean Callaghan, Head of Talent with Aon Ireland.

Thursday's business news review along with Newstalk's Business Editor Joe Lynam.

The buy to let market in this country is worth €6.6bn and includes small as well as institutional property investors. The market is a controversial one. So why would Capital Flow wish to enter this market at a time when tenants have more rights and protections than before? All to discuss with Colum Breslin is the chief commercial officer at Capitalflow.

Maxol is launching a food delivery service. It means that customers in Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare can get hot food and fresh groceries via Maxol in the initial roll out with 60 stores nationwide eventually offering the service. Brian Donaldson the Chief Executive of Maxol told Joe all about the new service.

Yesterday we heard from the Government in its Spring economy Forecast that Ireland is likely to avoid a recession even in the event of a prolonged fuel crisis in the middle east. That chimes with estimates from KPMG which says that Ireland will outperform many of its European peers amid this energy shock. Worryingly for house hunters, it expects rising ECB interest rates will add €1,200 to the average first time buyer annual repayments. All to discuss with Daragh McGreal, is chief economist with KPMG.

Wednesday's business news review with Joe Lynam.

Fuel prices have soared and the government has had to fork out ¾ of a billion to placate angry farmers and hauliers. So, a localised source of renewable energy may need to be accelerated. My next guest thinks Hydrogen needs to be considered part of the mix. So why risk it if we have wind and solar alternatives? All to discuss with Paul McCormack the Chief Executive of Hydrogen Ireland.

It is up to the companies themselves to install solar and heat recovery systems. The medical devices company Dexcom in Galway is one of them and they hired OHK commercial to install a system which at its peak can generate a third of Dexcom’s electricity needs. Speaking to Joe was Brian Healy, the Managing Director with OHK.

Tuesday's business news headlines along with Joe Lynam.

Monday's business news headlines along with Joe Lynam and Kathleen Brooks - XTB.

There are an estimated 90,000 people in Ireland whose retirement savings are held in a pension structure of which they themselves or their company may be the trustee. From Wednesday, these one member arrangements will have to comply with new obligations introduced by the EU under IORP II. Joe gets the details with Helena Dorrigan, Pensions Specialist at Davy stockbrokers.

The government is set to spend more than a quarter of a trillion Euros over the coming decade on major infrastructure projects. They require companies to submit tenders and bids. Now the Competition & Consumer Protection Commission has published useful guides for public bodies to reduce or eliminate so-called bid rigging. Úna Butler from the CCPC joined Joe this morning

So we know who won the Hungarian elections at the weekend and we know that change is definitely on its way for how that central European nation is run. We also know that Peter Magyar’s victory will instantly unlock billions of Euros in EU money which had been frozen due to Victor Orban's autocratic tendencies. But what of the Hungarian economy? What will change and what will remain the same? All to discuss with Anita Komuves, Reuters’s Hungary correspondent.

As we get older, the demand for care in the home is growing. That means the thousands of care workers calling in to check in and help our older citizens is also growing and they need to be managed and helped by care homes and provision providers. OneTouch Health provides software for those care workers to do their job more effectively and business is good. Neil McGough the Chief Executive of OneTouch Health spoke all about his business with Joe.