Irish exports fall to €133bn weighed down by decline in pharma products

Central Statistics Office figures show the total value of goods exports fell to €133bn through to the end of August. That is down from over €139bn in the same period last year. 

The value of goods exported fell in the first eight months of the year, with medical and pharma products accounting for a large part of the decline, official figures show.

The Central Statistics Office figures show the total value of goods exports fell to €133bn through to the end of August. That is down from over €139bn in the same period last year. 

Exports of goods were €16 billion in August 2023https://t.co/QY6bZSbLtA#CSOIreland #Ireland #Trade #IrishTrade #Exports #Imports #Businessstatistics #IrishBusiness #BusinessNews #Brexit pic.twitter.com/Y07wRLzOEe

— Central Statistics Office Ireland (@CSOIreland) October 16, 2023

The figures suggest the slowdown in growth in the world economy is weighing on Irish exports.  

The Economic and Social Research Institute earlier this year had highlighted the sharp decline in exports of pharma goods. The latest figures confirm medical and pharma exports fell sharply, to €51.6bn in the first eight months, down from €55bn in 2022.   

Ireland is host to some of the largest pharma makers in the world and the pandemic had boosted demand for their products, economists say. 

In budget documents last week, the Department of Finance said the fall in pharma exports suggested that after the pandemic there had been a "normalisation in pharma-chem exports rather than more permanent, or structural, changes within the sector". 

Shane Conneely, director of policy at Chambers Ireland, said the latest CSO figures confirm the weak trend in exports. 

“This highlights the need to improve competitiveness generally across all sectors, but also emphasises the need to ensure that our energy costs decrease if we are to improve our competitiveness at the global level," he said.