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Irish SMEs have been urged to examine their activities and see if they qualify for Research and Development tax credits. Mr. Dónall Curtin of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland and partner in Byrne Curtin Kelly said, “At a time when many companies are being impacted by reduced cashflows, it is worthwhile examining all activities to see if they qualify for grant aid or tax exemptions. In particular the definition of what can be termed R&D is broader than most business people realise and tax credits are not being claimed due to this lack of awareness”.

General Growth Properties missed another debt payment but avoided bankruptcy as bondholders continue to talk with the mall owner.

Data through January 2009, released today by Standard & Poor’s for its S&P/Case-Shiller1 Home Price Indices, the leading measure of US home prices, shows continued broad based declines in the prices of existing single family homes across the United States, with 13 of the 20 metro areas showing record rates of annual decline, and 14 reporting declines in excess of 10% versus January 2008. The chart above depicts the annual returns of the 10-City Composite and the 20-City Composite Home Price Indices. Following the lead of the 14 metro areas described above, the 10-City and 20-City Composites also set new records, with annual declines of 19.4% and 19.0%, respectively. Prices in Phoenix fell 35.0%, Las Vegas declined 32.5% and San Francisco dipped 32.4%. 

With foreigners returning home and banks reining in loans, the global crisis has shattered Singapore’s goal of reinventing itself as a financial and entertainment hub like Dubai or Monte Carlo.

IBEC says a business sentiment survey of its members shows that 64% of companies expect a pay freeze and 62% anticipate a recruitment freeze in the next three months.

The Central Bank said today, that after a relatively strong start to the year for Irish residential mortgage lending, the net increase in February was just €8 million. The annual rate of increase in residential mortgages (inclusive of securitised mortgages) declined to 4.9 per cent in February, from 5.4 per cent in January. This occurred despite lower interest rates and a decline in house prices of 2.1 per cent during the first two months of 2009. The February growth rate was the  lowest since the mid-1980’s.

Eurozone annual inflation is expected to be 0.6% in March 2009 according to a flash estimate issued by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. It was 1.2% in February. The March rate if confirmed, will be  a record low.

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Principal news stories from the Irish Independent, Irish Times, Irish Examiner, Financial Times and New York Times.