Cross-border businesses surge ahead

THE volume of Irish cross-border trade has continued to grow, topping the half-billion euro mark in the final three months of last year, new figures reveal.

The value of all-island trade in the last three months of 2003 rose by 0.86% to €502 million.

Aidan Gough, InterTrade Ireland’s Director of Strategy and Policy, said the volume of trade into the south from the north was increasing, while the flow in the opposite direction was decreasing.

“The findings of the Quarterly Monitor show a welcome increase in trade with eight of the 12 sectors analysed showing an increase over the third quarter of 2003,” he said.

“Total North-South trade rose by 8% in the fourth quarter with South-North trade falling by 4.8%. In overall terms, however, cross-border exports ended 2003 above their mid-year low.

“Although there has been a rise in manufacturing production in Ireland and Northern Ireland in the last quarter of 2003, the increase in Ireland was notably sharper.

“This follows previous trends showing an increasing production gap between North and South. Manufacturing production in Ireland now stands 36.5% above its 2000 level, compared to 4.1% in Northern Ireland.”

The study showed that cross-border trade has increased for two successive quarters.

The main drivers behind the improvement were the chemical and chemical products sector, which rose by 20.5%.

The Quarterly Monitor also showed that manufacturing production volumes increased by 7.4% for the last quarter of 2003 in the Republic and by just 0.6% in Northern Ireland.

There was also a notable increase in production of transport equipment with output rising by 9.4% in Ireland and 6.7% in Northern Ireland between the third and fourth quarters of 2003.