Microsoft’s Irish operations paid tax of $5.6 billion (€4.9 billion) last year, almost a fifth of total global taxes it paid in the year, according to a filing by the company under new European Union disclosure rules. Killian Woods reports.Sticking with the technology sector, social media company TikTok is looking to cut as many as 300 jobs from its Irish workforce as part of a restructuring at the Irish headquarters. The cuts will bring redundancies at the group’s Irish operations to more than 1,000 since the start of 2024, writes Ciara O’Brien.Meanwhile, IDA Ireland says the pace of multinational investment into Ireland accelerated in the first six months of 2026 despite the ongoing global uncertainty. Eoin Burke-Kennedy was on hand at the presentation of the figures.Doonbeg golf resort delivered income of close to $20 million (€17.6 million) last year for US president Donald Trump, according to a financial disclosure for the first year of his presidency that he is required to submit by US law and which was released by the US office of government ethics.Getting back to more domestic affairs, contentious plans for a €16.7 million 22-unit residential scheme on the grounds of the former Dalkey Lodge Nursing Home have secured a green light from Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, writes Gordon Deegan.And a new scrappage scheme designed to boost demand for electric vehicles was closed just hours after it opened for applications as interest in the scheme overwhelmed the budget available. Peter Flanagan reports.DCC’s largest shareholder, Fidelity International, has come out against an improved takeover proposal by two US private equity groups, saying the £5.7 billion (€6.63 billion) pitch – equating to £66.72 a share, or 15 per cent more than the initial offer tabled in April - “still undervalues the company”. Joe Brennan reports.The company behind the plan to build a €250 million winter sports arena and concert venue in Dublin has secured the endorsement of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council Dublin Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Ireland, writes Eoin Burke-Kennedy. A former Supermac’s franchisee must pay over €96,000 in damages to the fast food chain over a breach of their franchise agreement, the High Court has ruled. Judge David Keane noted that “perhaps surprisingly” there was no written agreement underpinning the franchise arrangement between the two sides.At a cost of €681 million in a full year, is the VAT reduction to 9 per cent for the hospitality sector a good way to spend taxpayer’s money? Adrian Cummins, of the Restaurant Association of Ireland and Trinity economist Barra Roantree debate the issue on our Inside Business podcast.Asked about sharenting – sharing content relating to your children online – one in three parents in Ireland and France said they do so daily or several times a week. If that’s you, embarrassing your children might be the least risky feature in doing so, writes Ciara O’Brien.In our Ask the Lawyer column, a woman who has inherited a home from her mother wants to know whether she needs to go to a solicitor to have it transferred into her name.Finally, the real reason many bosses want everyone back in the office five days a week? Their ego. That’s the outcome of a six-year study by organisational psychologist Adam Grant at the Wharton School in the University of Pennsylvania, and PhD candidates Marissa Shandell and Courtney Elliott. Margaret Ward has the details. If you’d like to read more about the issues that affect your finances try signing up to On the Money, the weekly newsletter from our personal finance team, which will be issued every Friday to Irish Times subscribers.