All Claire's standalone stores in the UK and Ireland have stopped trading after the accessories chain's financial woes saw it fall into administration twice in a year, BBC.com reported. Administrators Kroll said that 154 stores have shut and more than 1,300 staff have been "notified of redundancy", though its 350 concessions will remain open. Changing consumer tastes also spelled the death knell for the retailer, which has struggled like many High Street firms. Kroll said: "As of 27 April, all Claire's standalone stores in UK and Ireland have ceased trading.

Customers who bought products from a Carlow-based homes and garden centre that were never delivered have expressed concern they may never see promised refunds after the company entered a process aimed at restructuring its debts, the Irish Times reported. Rathwood claimed in a statement posted on its website over the weekend that it had gone into examinership and would not be issuing any refunds owed to customers over undelivered orders until the process is complete.

Businessman Paddy McKillen jnr’s bid to set aside a bankruptcy summons issued against him over an alleged €2.1 million debt will be heard by the High Court in May, the Irish Times reported. When the matter was mentioned before Judge Liam Kennedy on Monday, he set a hearing date for May 11th. The judge was told by barrister Keith Farry, for McKillen jnr, of Torquay Road, Foxrock, Dublin, the necessary legal documents had been exchanged between the sides.

Headline inflation in the Irish economy could double to 4.2 per cent in the coming months if there is a prolonged conflict in the Middle East, the Central Bank has warned, the Irish Times reported. In its latest quarterly bulletin, the regulator said the current spike in oil and gas prices would lead to lower growth and higher inflation and that lower-income households would be “disproportionately” impacted. The bank’s central projection, based on where oil and gas prices were on March 11th, sees inflation averaging 2.9 per cent this year.

The Supreme Court will consider a common clause in commercial loan agreements that allowed Bank of Ireland to raise interest rates in line with its increased lending costs in the wake of the financial crash, the Irish Times reported. In deciding the case is of significant public importance, a panel of three Supreme Court judges noted the interest variation clause had a “serious impact on borrowing and on the margins of commercial customers”.

Headline inflation in the Irish economy remained near 3 per cent in February but this was before the shock to energy prices triggered by US-Israel-led war in Iran, the Irish Times reported. Consumer prices rose by 2.7 per cent over the 12 months to February, unchanged from the previous month, as rising food and housing costs offset falls in the cost of transport and household furnishings.