Exports have introduced an additional £1.5bn in “good, clear money” into Northern Eire’s financial system over the previous two years, although uncertainty stays over the affect of the Northern Eire Protocol.
Manufacturing NI chief Stephen Kelly cautiously welcomed new figures from Eire’s Central Statistics Workplace displaying a continued soar in cross-border commerce this 12 months.
However he mentioned that the NI Protocol Invoice nonetheless had the capability to harm native producers as confidence “drained away” in Northern Eire’s buying and selling capacity.
Senior economist, Dr Esmond Birnie, has additionally warned that regardless of appearances of an enhancing financial system, the protocol was performing as a “incorrect means spherical industrial coverage”.
Whereas some producers in meals processing appeared to have thrived, Dr Birnie mentioned different sectors like engineering that had been extra productive had been struggling.
In keeping with the CSO, the worth of products flowing from Northern Eire into the Republic was up by 23% between January to Could in comparison with the identical time in 2021.
The rise was price an estimated €357m (£302.8m), bringing the full stream to €1.939bn (£1.6bn).
The determine was even larger for items that had been coming from the south to Northern Eire, with a rise of 42% bringing the full commerce to €1.974bn (£1.674bn).
This can be a soar of €586m (£497m) because the identical interval final 12 months.
Elsewhere, the figures confirmed that imports from GB to the Republic had been up by 71% to €2bn (£1.7bn) in comparison with Could 2021, whereas exports to GB amounted to €1.5bn (£1.2bn).
Eire’s general exports amounted to €18bn (£15.2bn), which was a rise of almost €4.5bn (£3.8bn) in comparison with the identical time final 12 months.