Economic Activity Surge Noticed In Ireland
While so many countries from all around are struggling, Ireland shows a constant growth in its economy at a rate of 8% per year. This is an economic activity surge that was not seen ever since the early 2000s.
We are faced with an obvious rise in investments and exports. The construction sector, once almost close to death, is now in a rebound. People started to realize rental property ownership advantages and the Ireland gross domestic product eventually ended up growing 1.5% during the second quarter. The figures released by the government added a 2.8% revised growth rate during quarter number 1, with a growth that translates to the annual rate of 7.7% during the second quarter, all according to Central Statistics Office.
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According to Ireland’s finance minister, Michael Noonan, the figures released highlight that the “stable and strong recovery in the Irish economy is well under way and is starting to be felt across all sectors of the economy”. The official forecast highlights that the Irish economy will expand by around 4.5% till the end of the year. The initial projection was of 3%, a figure that was assumed one week ago and clearly shattered pretty fast.
We can say that Ireland’s economy is currently moving towards the proper direction with local companies using out of the box methods to promote business and investments coming in from all around the world.
The only problem is that one part of the current momentum is caused by the rebound that appeared after the huge fall that the Irish economy enjoyed in the following years. The property bubble of the country burst and then the banking sector collapsed.
Obviously, the construction sector is the one that was the most affected. The activity expanded 11% in the 3 months leading to June. We saw that in many parts of Ireland, building one house costs more than the price at which the property can be sold. The economy in Ireland is recovering and is more sustainable but the 7% yearly growth will not be a norm.
According to Monetary Library, many of the economists are currently upgrading the forecasts for 2014. Many believe that the economy can expand up to 5%, which is quite higher than 2013’s 0.2%. Also, a part of the growth appeared thanks to the securing of unanimous backing from finance ministers in the Eurozone for the country to refinance around 16 billion euro of sovereign debt (high-interest) owed to International Monetary Fund, at interest rates that are lower than the market’s. Annual interest payment savings are going to grow because of this.
To sum up, Ireland is starting to do great but it is a guarantee that more positives will need to be viewed in the future.
We need to realize that the country is currently on an upward trend but that does not mean it will continue. Smart investments and financial decisions are still necessary. It is important that the country continues to grow from an economic point of view and there is still time till the end of the year.
