SOME early festive cheer for homeowners anxious about rising interest rates is that the European Central Bank may not need to raise rates next year. Its "nancing rate is unlikely to exceed 3.5% in 2007, according to Lisney economist Dr John McCartney, commenting on data from Eurostat showing that year-on-year in"ation in the Eurozone fell from 1.7% in September to 1.6% in October. This concurs with other "gures for the autumn period indicating that throughout the Euro area there has been a marked slow-down in in"ation growth.

"We are now clearly seeing a cooling off in the Eurozone economy.

The ECB is almost certain to raise rates by a quarter point on 7 December, and this should further dampen in"ationary pressures, " predicts McCartney. Considering recent falls in the price of oil and the value of the US dollar, he argues that the ECB will not need to raise rates again next year. "There is simply no need to risk running economic growth into the sand while in"ation remains well below the ECB target of 2% price growth."

TROCAIRE BUILDING HOMES FOR BURMESE

Trocaire has extended its Christmas Global Gift range to include a housing kit aimed at helping Burmese refugees in Thailand. The housing kit will help families with the materials required to replace their homes. As well as house kits, other gifts include birth certi"cates for children in Mozambique, olive trees for farmers in the occupied Palestinian territories and kits to help returning refugees in Sudan. Gifts range in price from 10 to 200 and can be ordered online at www. trocaire. org/global-gift; call save at 1850 408 408.