Shipping and transport group Irish Continental (ICGC) has taken steps to accelerate future earnings growth after investing more than €300m in two new ships.This investment is a display of confidence in the future despite the potential for disruption from Brexit.Irish Continental owns Irish Ferries, comprising five modern ferries on routes between Ireland and the UK, as well as between...

UK investors may feel there are more questions than answers as we hurtle towards Brexit and detailed negotiations on a deal with Europe. That won't change in the short-term regardless of the outcome of today's General Election and the identity of the next government. That suggests, in our opinion, that buying market experience into your portfolio could be a sensible move, and few fund managers...

The new trading week gets off to a shaky start with economic and geopolitical concerns making investors nervous. China has cut its economic growth target to 6.5% from last year's 6.7% rate; North Korea launched four missiles towards the Sea of Japan; and the US Federal Reserve indicated it may put up interest rates this month.The FTSE 100 followed in the footsteps of Japan's Nikkei index with...

Investors looking for a rub of the green in 2016 should apparently look no further than the Emerald Isle. Ireland is set to top the EU GDP growth table for the third year in a row according to research from Investec.After posting GDP growth of 7.1% in 2015, Ireland was European Union's fastest growing economy last year and this year, despite less than spectacular global growth (forecast at...

European equity outperformance? Pigs might fly.Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain (the PIIGS) are confounding commentators' 2015 predictions with improving economic and stock market performance early in the year.Shares correctly called a rally on European stocks ahead of the European Central Bank's quantitative easing (QE) announcement (22 Jan, ECBonanza). European stock indices in...

UK stocks begin trading on the back foot after near eight-week highs yesterday. The FTSE 100 index eass off 18 points to 6,813 with mining stocks bearing the brunt of the selling pressure in morning trade as investors book profits and scale back their risk appetite. Rio Tinto (RIO) leads the blue-chip loser board, off 2.8% to £32.425, followed by Chilean Antofagasta (ANTO), its' shares...