Aughinish’s future in the balance and Eir to boost 4G

Business Today: the best news, analysis and comment from ‘The Irish Times’ business desk

Growth in construction continued in October but the pace of expansion slowed to its lowest rate in more than three years, the latest figures show.

A deal designed to lift the threat of US sanctions on the owner of manufacturer Rusal Aughinish Aluminaand secure around 2,000 Irish jobs hangs in the balance, according to the company's chairman. Barry O'Halloran reports.

National lottery cash for good causes has fallen by €43 million over 10 years according to a report from its rivals, which says their businesses do not threaten the State-owned draw, writes Barry O'Halloran

Telecoms company Eir plans to spend €150 million on boosting its mobile network to provide the newest technology to its customers, writes Barry O'Halloran. Eir, which sells mobile and fixed-line telephone services to customers in the Republic, intends to install fourth generation (4G) equipment at all it sites and add hundreds of new ones to its network over the next two years.

Growth in construction continued in October but the pace of expansion slowed to its lowest rate in more than three years, the latest figures show, writes Barry O'Halloran. Ulster Bank's construction purchasing managers' index (PMI) shows that activity in commercial development, house-building and public projects increased again last month.

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US technology learning company Pluralsight plans to increase its headcount in Dublin by up to 140 staff in the next year as it builds brand awareness here, reports Peter Hamilton.

Shopper footfall grew across the North by 2.7 per cent, according to the latest Northern Ireland Retail Consortium (NIRC) figures over the four weeks to the end of October, writes Francess McDonnell. However Belfast is still suffering from the after effects of the Primark fire.

Fintech firm Revolut has implemented new machine learning technology that has cut card fraudsignificantly, the company said. Ciara O'Brien writes.. The firm said it is using algorithms, machine learning and computational techniques to protect against card fraud and money laundering, claiming to see a foufold reduction in fraud in two months.

Pilita Clark wonders why we stick with the status quo despite all the evidence to the contrary.

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Conn Ó Midheach

Conn Ó Midheach

Conn O Midheach is Assistant Business Editor - Digital of The Irish Times