Grocery retailer Iceland again boosted sales across its estate in the Republic, but profit slipped further into the red as costs spiked almost 62 per cent, The Irish Times reported. The UK frozen foods retailer posted a rise in sales of 17 per cent to €57.7 million as it continued to expand its store network here in the year to March 29th, 2019. Iceland now has 26 outlets spread across the country in locations such as Donegal, Cork, Dublin and Galway.

Even if the European Central Bank delivers a dose of monetary stimulus as widely expected on Thursday, the euro could still climb, analysts warn, leading banks to advise clients to trim any bets against the currency, the Financial Times reported. Typically, interest-rate cuts and blasts of supportive bond buying drag down currencies. But levels of conviction that ECB president Mario Draghi will unleash a heavy-hitting package of measures are so high, that any sense the central bank has not gone far enough could be brutal.

Holders of credit insurance on Thomas Cook Group Plc are drawing up plans to potentially block the U.K. travel agent’s $1.1 billion rescue in order to ensure they get a payout, Bloomberg News reported. The group of hedge funds, including Sona Asset Management and XAIA Investment GmbH, may vote against a bailout led by Fosun Tourism Group at a creditor meeting on Sept. 18 if they don’t secure their payment before then, according to people familiar with the plan. Fosun’s rescue includes a debt-for-equity swap that could prevent compensation on their default insurance.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi hopes to end his eight-year term with a bang. Some fear it could conclude with a fizzle, The Wall Street Journal reported. In the run-up to his departure on Oct. 31, the central banker has signaled plans for a large, final burst of monetary stimulus to prop up a eurozone economy that is tottering under the pressure of trade tensions. But critical voices are multiplying, including a growing number from the ECB’s own 25-member rate-setting committee. Mr.

BMW would reduce output at its plant in Oxford by eliminating a work shift should the UK opt for a hard Brexit, according to its chief financial officer, The Irish Times reported. The German carmaker already plans to completely halt production on the October 31st deadline when Britain is expected to leave the European Union, as well as on November 1st, CFO Nicolas Peter said at the Frankfurt motor show.

Property developers, medical doctors and publicans were prominent among the 43 names published today on the tax defaulters list, which outlined details of €9.8 million worth of settlements in the three months to the end of June, The Irish Times reported. The list of names published by Revenue represents just a fraction of the €118 million collected in settlements during the period as a result of interventions, audits and investigations by the tax authorities, it said. Details of cases involving court penalties totalling more than €1.1 million were also published.

European capital markets are still too small to provide enough funding for companies, which continue to rely on banks, an EU document said, urging new measures to unlock financial resources and spur funding through equities and corporate debt, Reuters reported. The document, seen by Reuters, was prepared by the Finnish presidency of the European Union before a meeting of EU finance ministers on Friday in Helsinki that will address the matter.

Mario Draghi wants to go out with a bang, by launching a fresh wave of monetary easing before he steps down as European Central Bank president in October — but the vital question is whether the bank’s governing council will agree, the Financial Times reported. Mr Draghi is expected to put the option of fresh stimulus measures up for discussion at the ECB’s board meeting on Thursday, in response to worries about an economic slowdown and subdued inflation in the eurozone.

The number of UK companies including warnings over Brexit in their annual reports has more than doubled in the past six months as the threat of a no-deal exit from the EU has increased, according to filings from medium and large businesses to Companies House, the Financial Times reported. Companies operating in the manufacturing and retail sectors have mentioned Brexit the most, highlighting the impact that potential tariffs and border delays could have on businesses that rely on “just in time” delivery of supplies.

Autos have made Germany into a global manufacturing powerhouse, but pollution concerns -- intensified by Volkswagen AG’s 2015 diesel-cheating scandal -- have sullied the reputation of a product that once embodied individual freedom, Bloomberg News reported. More recently, trade woes and slowing economies have hit demand. The consequence is Germany’s car production slumping to the lowest level since at least 2010.