Keener competitiveness vital, says bank

ECONOMIC recovery in Ireland is at risk from declining competitiveness, Europe's top bank has warned.

In a new report, BNP Paribas, Europe's largest bank by market capitalisation, said growth would also be much lower than the heady days of the Celtic Tiger.

Even if we get to grip with the competition factor, the report said the 1990s double digit-style growth was a thing of the past. In the years ahead, BNP Paribas suggested maximum growth of 5% per annum is as much as the economy will produce.