Irish GDP increases by over 9% with strong post-pandemic rebound

Muireann Duffy

The country's Gross National Income (GNI) expanded by 6.7 per cent last year, while Gross Domestic Product (GDP) jumped by 9.4 per cent.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) published the 2022 figures on Friday, alongside results from the first quarter of this year.

The growth in GDP was largely attributed to a strong expansion in sectors dominated by multinational organisations, which grew by 15.6 per cent, while all other sectors saw an increase of 5.6 per cent in the year.

Exports were up by 13.9 per cent, as overall imports grew by 15.9 per cent. Modified domestic demand, which focusses on the domestic economy, grew by 9.5 per cent.

The CSO found that the balance of payments showed a €54.6 billion current account surplus, while the modified measure, which excludes globalisation effects, noted a surplus of €19.5 billion.

The Q1 figures for 2023 however showed there was a slight contraction during the early stages of the year, with GDP falling by 2.8 per cent compared to the last quarter of 2022.

While the financial and insurance activities, construction, and information & communications sectors all showed growth, government expenditure, investments and industry noted declines.

Commenting on the figures, the CSO's assistant director general Jennifer Banim said domestic businesses benefited from the lifting of Covid restrictions last year.

"The distribution, transport, hotels & restaurants sector increased by 16.9 per cent in the year, with agriculture, forestry & fisheries up by 6.3 per cent, while construction and real estate activities both posted growth of 4.2 per cent."

'Vote of confidence'

The figures were welcomed by Minister for Finance Michael McGrath, stating it confirms the "strong post-pandemic rebound in the domestic economy last year".

"Despite multi-decade high rates of inflation, it is encouraging to see the very strong growth in both consumer and investment spending," he added.

The Minister said he was also encouraged to see strong and sustained investment in the Irish economy by multinational companies, describing it as a "massive vote of confidence" despite the challenges facing the global economy.

"Looking ahead, the strength of our labour market, rising consumer confidence and the easing in inflation, should all support growth over the remainder of the year.

"That being said, many of the headwinds to growth which existed at the start of the year remain ever-present," Mr McGrath warned, highlighting capacity constraints, particularly in the housing and labour markets.

The Minister added the Government's budget strategy, set out in the Summer Economic Statement last week, will "will allow us to, once again, strike the right balance in ensuring sustained investment in our public services and infrastructure while keeping our public finances on a positive trajectory".