Review: Agricultural exports among few sectors to maintain volumes

Agricultural exports were one of the few sectors to maintain their export volumes, according to the Irish Exporters Association (IEA) half-year review.

The Irish Agri-food sector accounts for 10% of Ireland’s total export and has been posting strong growth of up to 25% over the last two years.

A stagnation of the export volumes is an indication of the effect that the economic downturn has been having on Irish export market.

Chief executive of the IEA, John Whelan, emphasised the need to support all exporters in these difficult times as the eurozone crisis intensifies and threatens to derail any export recovery.

“The failure by the EU heads of state to resolve the eurozone crisis is creating excessive uncertainty amongst businesses and consumers, not only here in Europe but also in the two largest global economies of the USA and China.

The impact on Irish merchandise exports is extensive with exports to the eurozone contracting by 5% in the first six months of the year, effectively derailing the recovery of the many indigenous manufacturing exporters to the region emphasised the urgent need to support our manufacturing exporters in these difficult times for the sector as the eurozone crisis intensifies and threatens to derail Irish export recovery,” he said.

Mr Whelan said the country’s export sector was much too dependent on exporting pharmaceutical products to the US.

“Exports to Ireland’s number one export market has taken a severe downturn as the full impact of the end of patent protection has hit pharmaceutical exports to the US in the first half of year.

“However, patent protection is by market, hence the impact will vary according to the export country destination.

“Exports to the USA were mostly impacted as theearly patent registrations were made there and hence the patent protection has come to an end earliest there.

“The pharmaceutical exports to the USA fell by 30% in the first half of 2012,” he said.

There was a glimmer of hope for exporters with the strength of sterling against the dollar making Irish exports very attractive in the UK.

“The falling value of the euro against sterling has given a welcome boost to exports into the UK market, which grew by 15% in the first half of the year,” he said.

Mr Whelan said the biggest opportunity for exporters is to target the emerging Brazil, Russia, India and China countries, but he criticised Enterprise Ireland’s failure to target these areas.

“A reallocation of the Irish Government trade promotional agencies and embassy staffing is urgently needed to support Irish export industries efforts in expanding in to these fast growing, but distant and difficulty to enter markets — for example the recent closing the Enterprise Ireland office in Guangzhou has to be seen as a retrograde support move,” he said.