12/04/2011

BOI Reveals 'Unwelcome' Economic Trends

In its latest quarterly update the Bank of Ireland (BOI) has forecast growth levels as more modest than expected.

In 2011, the Irish Republic's economy will grow by 0.5% - which is 1% down from the previous forecast.

The bank's outlook highlighted "two surprising and unwelcome" economic trends over the past month.

Author of the report, Bank of Ireland Chief Economist, Dan McLaughlin, said: "The first was that the unemployment rate over the past six months has been much higher than previously published, on the basis that the labour force stopped falling in the final quarter of 2010."

The BOI report predicts the unemployment rate in 2011 to average 14.4% from 13.6% last year.

Mr McLaughlin said: "The second data release showed that nominal GDP was deemed to have fallen by a massive 6.6% in just three months. The decline in real GDP was also a substantial 1.6%, driven by falling exports, contrary to the trend over the rest of the year.

"As a result, the economy entered 2011 in a weaker state than most expected and as a consequence we are revising down our GDP growth forecast for the year to a modest 0.5%."

(BMcN)

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