Are Consumers Unwittingly Headed for Financial Disaster?

Clare FM

Ireland's finances are in "good condition". That is according to the Minister for Finance. Paschal Donohoe is confident we can meet the challenge of US tariffs. US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from the European Union from the 1st of August. He has said that a trade agreement could possibly be reached between the EU and the United States. Minister Donohoe did caution that the scenario facing Ireland could "regrettably" have a "significant effect" on growth and job creation, although he added talks are underway at a European level to try and avoid this. Meanwhile, wider economic uncertainty worldwide has not led to a slowdown in consumer spending. New 'Bank of Ireland' data for May, shows Irish consumer spending rose 6.5 percent year-on-year. To assess whether consumers are looking at impeding financial hardship, Alan Morrissey was joined by, Micheál Collins, Ennis native economist and Assistant Professor of Social Policy at UCD and Dr Chris McInerney, Kilkishen-based who’s Associate Professor in the Department of Politics at University of Limerick.