Try SnagIT.

* Irish ‘core’ retail sales (ex-garages) increased for a third
straight month in March. That has not happened since May 2007.

* More tellingly, the value of ‘core’ sales was up for three out
of the last four months (+0.7% mom in March). That suggests price
discounting is slowing, as consumer demand recovers.

* Elsewhere, numbers on the Live Register fell by 500 (or 0.1%).
The total is still down since the recent peak in January 2010. All of
this better data (along with growth in both of this week’s PMIs for the
first time in almost 30 months) confirms that Ireland has exited
recession. But it is being hidden among the bond market turmoil.

You can always take a screencap. Shift PrtScn and then open something like Microsoft Paint, paste in and crop.

Tax Revenues = €9,005m

Total Expenditure (including debt interest) = €16,816

My own deficit of €7,811m

The actual deficit is €6,961

What is this difference of €850m (exactly)?

I would like to save this graph somewhere but it ain’t possible.

you mean an actual bloomberg terminal or bloomberg.com (that u cant save to)?

The Bloomberg ones are brilliant but you can only print them, not save them.

Yes, next step will be some honesty from our leaders on spending cuts.

And that’s the way it has been since the foundation of the state except in the past 10 years. The question is “Can the Irish economy produce enough jobs so this doesn’t have to happen?”. I left school in 1981, college in 1985 and qualified as an accountant in 1988. At every stage a big proportion of my peers emigrated.

We’ve tried FDI with reasonable success but then Ireland got too expensive, we’ve tried a property bubble approach which we all know was disastrous. Now we’re going for the Smart economy - which to me is all a bit vague and aspirational but who knows?

Do we agree that we have a spending problem more so than a taxation problem?

You can portray these figures as economic stabilisation and recovery but this “recovery” will be achieved while exporting a generation. That is tacit government policy.

Tax receipts are still down 10.8% year-on-year.

I work in the commercial world, I’ve been through 2 recessions in that time (not counting this one). You look for signs and any sort of growth on last year is to be welcomed.

As for Growth, there is still money out there. As property costs come down (value and rents) people decide to jump in. Other costs are now down also and the price of doing business in Ireland has definitely dropped. Pay expectations are lower too. Sterling is strengthening (though a hung parliament might undo that).

By no means are we out of the woods yet and this latest crisis could undo everything but when you have been in business over the past couple of years any sign of life is to be welcomed. Time will tell if it was just a break in the cloud of ash.

All taxes except CGT were up on last year, however most of the €182 million increase can be attributed to VAT and Corporation Tax. As April should not be an important month for these taxes it suggests that timing and noise has a lot to do with the increase. Still, the small increases seen in Income Tax and Excise Duties are positive but not enough to suggest a corner is being turned.

After gross up spending and revenue for PRIS.
Spending was 51.4% of GNP in 2009 and will probably be higher in 2010.

What do you want me to expand on?

perhaps you would expand on your erudite and profound statement.

And she would know - being an expert in the field.

If memory serves me, PRSI etc are recorded as a contra against spending under the term “appropriations in aid.” If you were to view them as just a form of payroll tax, you would have a point.

What would that do to the argument that spending as a percentage of GDP/GNP is quite low in an EU context? Bear in mind that some part of health, education and pensions are privately funded and we do not have a large standing army.

I sincerely wish they would. I am not holding my breath though. Perhaps I’m sounding cynical but it’s only a result of observing what politicians say and what politicians do over many years that’s caused it.

This is something that has always mystified me about the exchequer statements. They dont seem to include PRSI and the health (wealth) levy on the revenue side. Is this netted off against expendiure, ie it is more accurate to say we have expenditure of 70bn and revenue of 50bn?

I agree that this would be a good pre-emptive move… but fear that politics will always trump common sense. I’m sure Mr L would rather gargle battery acid than show his hand too early.

Sorry, but we are not at home to cynics, who try to damage Ireland Inc with their endless bad news. Shame on you!

This is a serious economics blog.

George

You too! If you cannot be positive, +ve, then say nothing! Why people will think we cannot govern ourselves. Kevin Bloody Myers will be popping up next!

Definitely good news we are on target and the drop in tax take on last year is falling.”

Does this mean that the deficit is growing? STILL!?

LOL! HAHAAAHAAAHAAAAA!

This is a serious economics blog, please leave your tasteless jokes at the metaphorical door! Where do we see this growth coming from? What demand is growing? Exit stamps on passports? Abolished. I have already suggested increasing passport fees etc to 1,000 euro. Any ideas on how growth is arriving? Perhaps we can tax that, too?

Wishful thinking has strangely never been taxed. I believe we must start on this blog. Any mention of “growth” without details of how etc., should attract a demand for 1 euro wishful tax donated to the holy originators who will try to get us an editor to remove the sp. mistakes.