AIB says it has approved more than €60m in credit to more than 1,300 businesses and farmers over the past three months from the €200m loan fund allocated to it by the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland.

The loans, priced at 4.5 percent and available for terms of up to ten years, are the cheapest available to business in the market and are also available from Bank of Ireland.

The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland is to make up to €800m in competitively-priced loans available over the next two years, funded from a number of sources including KfW bank of Germany and the European Investment Bank.

Meanwhile the Telegraph reports this morning that AIB in the UK is setting up a £50m fund to lend to franchisees setting up a business under the umbrella of a recognised brand such as Subway or the Body Shop.

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Building activity, new orders and employment levels all rose strongly in April – the start of the second quarter of the year, according to the latest Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers Index.

The seasonally-adjusted index rose more than four points in April to 57.2 - any measure above 50 is evidence of overall growth in the sector

According to the survey, the pace of activity accelerated across all three major constructions sectors, housing, commercial and civil engineering, which returned to growth in April. The rate of job creation was “substantial” and has been continuous each month since September 2013

The pick up in activity contributed to a further reduction in the availability of sub-contractors. Their rates continue to rise sharply despite what the survey terms “a further modest deterioration in the quality of their work.”

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