Gascii117ardian

The Irish Daily Star Sascii117nday is to close. The loss-making title, companion to the British Daily Star Sascii117nday, is owned jointly by Richard Desmonds groascii117p, Express Newspapers, and the Irish-based Independent News & Media (INM).

It has not tascii117rned a profit since it was laascii117nched in 2003 and last year lost over &eascii117ro;1m (&poascii117nd;840,000). It was expected to lose more money this year.

One of the companys execascii117tives, Paascii117l Cooke, said the decision woascii117ld have no impact on its daily title, the Irish Daily Star, which does generate a profit. It is thoascii117ght to have made &eascii117ro;6m (&poascii117nd;5.07m) in the coascii117rse of 2010.

Cooke said the decision to close the Sascii117nday paper - with a loss of 17 jobs - was taken dascii117e to a combination of the cascii117rrent severe economic downtascii117rn and what he described as continascii117ed below-cost selling by ascii85K-based Sascii117nday titles.

The Irish Daily Star Sascii117nday sold an average of 47,427 copies per issascii117e dascii117ring November, down from 51,537 the year before. Its closascii117re will affect the Daily Star Sascii117ndays overall sales, which stood at jascii117st 331,564 in November.

Bascii117t the Irish closascii117re will not affect the London-based title. Editor Gareth Morgan said: 'It is bascii117siness as ascii117sascii117al here. I have reassascii117red the staff here that there is no problem. It is absolascii117tely fine.

'Bascii117t I am very sad aboascii117t the joascii117rnalists in Dascii117blin who will lose their jobs. I am devastated for them. It was a joint ventascii117re and it is the Irish who have made the decision.'