Ireland
The following data have been gathered by Capgemini and are part of the World Retail Banking Report published annually in March.
Macro economic indicators (2006)
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GDP at current prices and PPP
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€ 174,704 billion
|
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Inhabitants
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4,239,848 million
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GDP per head
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€ 41,205
|
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Economic growth rate
|
8.2%
|
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Consumer confidence indicator
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89.8%
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Unemployment rate
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4.3%
|
|
Consumer Price Index
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4.0%
|
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Banking staff
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41,000
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Number of branches
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934
|
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Number of ATMs
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3,306
|
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Households savings ratio
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5.0%
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Inflation rate
|
4.0%
|
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Interest rate, consumer credit
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7.1%
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Interest rate, residential mortgage
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4.3%
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Interest rate on long term bonds
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3.8%
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Type and size of players
Retail Banking Income for 2006 (in Million Euros) and Cost/Income Ratio
Products
Market Share of Deposits and Loans for top 5 banks in Ireland for 2005
Trends
Mortgage market growth more sustainable
• The latest Irish Banking Federation/PwC Mortgage Market Profile shows that new lending continues to moderate to more sustainable levels in a mortgage market that is still growing in overall terms. The resilience of the first time buyers (FTB) segment of the market is evident, holding its overall share at 19.1% of all new lending (by volume). The volume of switching activity continues to increase and now accounts for 17.4% of all new mortgage lending (by volume).
Lower cost of credit
• The average cost of personal credit (average percentage rate of charge – APRC) in Ireland is significantly below the euro area average for loans for consumption purposes – 7.1% compared to 8.25% (MFI Interest Rate Statistics, ECB, June 2007).
• Business lending is increasingly competitive. Continuing erosion of margins on business lending. Goodbody Stockbrokers recently forecast a further 20% decline by end-2008 in spreads on business lending for the main banks.
Increased competition
• Overall customer mobility rate for Ireland of 5.4% (personal) and 6.95% (business) – typical customer mobility pattern in the EU [Source: Report on the retail banking sector inquiry, European Commission, January 2007]. However, mortgage switching is increasing (see above)
• Davy Stockbrokers expects average net interest margins (NIM) at Irish banks to decline from 1.98% in 2005 to 1.77% by 2008. Average NIM was 2.81% in 2002.
