Major slow down for economy at end of 2007

The latest economic figures from the Central Statistics Office show a considerable slowdown in growth during the final quarter of last year.

The CSO says year-on-year GDP growth was 3.5% in the last three months of 2007, while GNP growth was just 1.2%.

The seasonally adjusted figures show a 0.8% decrease in GDP and a 2.2% decrease in GNP.

GNP is often regarded as a more accurate indicator of Irish economic performance as it excludes the profits of foreign-owned businesses.

On an annual basis, meanwhile, GDP grew by 5.3% throughout 2007, while GNP was up 4.5%.

Elsewhere, the volume of consumer spending was up 5.4% during the year, while capital investment was up 0.2%, despite a significant drop of 12.3% in the final quarter of the year.

Net exports also increased by €3.8bn and industrial output was up 6.9%, but this masks a 1.1% decline in construction output during the year and an 8.8% decline in the last three months of the year.