A round-up of other business news in brief

B of I says exports will continue to drive economic recovery

Exports will continue to be the main driver of economic growth and will more than offset a further fall in domestic demand this year, according to Bank of Ireland’s Quarterly Economic Outlook. However, while GDP may grow by 1 per cent, the report predicts that GNP will fall this year.

Dan McLaughlin, chief economist at Bank of Ireland and author of the report, says a range of monthly indicators now point to a broadening of the Irish recovery. In particular, retail sales look set to record strong growth in the second quarter, with overall consumer spending set to increase.

The era of price deflation may also be coming to a close. The report predicts a return to annual inflation by the end of the year and an average of more than 1.5 per cent next year. There is also a positive note in relation to employment trends.

PwC says GDP to contract by 0.7%

An economic forecast by PricewaterhouseCoopers published yesterday finds that Ireland's economy is showing signs of turning the corner, although it predicts GDP will contract by 0.7 per cent this year. The PricewaterhouseCoopers report says this contraction is based on the assumption that demand growth in key export sectors in the UK and US will remain low, the challenging banking environment will persist and high unemployment will limit domestic demand growth.

By next year, the report predicts GDP will return to growth, at 2.7 per cent for 2011.