After surging all year US imports of Irish products plunge in April as tariffs come into effect

Higher US duties on imported goods help explain the huge slowdown

The CSO said that in March, just under €20bn in pharmaceutical products were exported to the US. This compares with just over €2bn exported in the same month last year.

New US data shows imports of products from Ireland plunged last month as companies here ended the massive front-loading of goods ahead of the tariff impact.

According to the US Commerce Department, the trade deficit the country has with Ireland fell $19.9bn (€17.4bn) to $9.5bn (€8.3bn) in April.