Dear Reader,

Here is an overview of today's economic news and market action:

• Market jitters in relation to the SU banking sector continued yesterday …
• Elsewhere, as expected, the ECB hiked rates by 25bps …
• Market had a dovish reaction to the ECB …
• Against the backdrop, the euro was under downward pressure …
• Sees EUR/USD open back in the lower half of $1.10-1.11 ...
• EUR/GBP is operating down at the midpoint of 87-88p …
• GBP/USD is changing hands just above $1.26 …
• Later today, the US labour market report for April is due …

ECB slows pace of rate hikes to 25bps, but is not pausing

The May meeting of the ECB’s Governing Council saw the central bank raise rates by 25bps, bringing the key deposit rate up to 3.25%.

Sharpest growth in new orders in a year 

Following March’s softer upturn, the Irish service sector regained growth momentum at the start of the second quarter of the year.

Saving Grace

Despite the double shock of a sharp rise in inflation and much higher interest rates over the past year, as well as a marked slowdown in the global economy, the Irish economy continues to display considerable resilience.