Ireland’s €56 billion trade surplus

New figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that Ireland exported more than €196 billion worth of goods and imported €140 billion worth of goods in 2023.

The CSO states that the EU accounted for more than €81 billion of Ireland’s exports, while the US was the largest single export partner with exports of
€54 billion.

The State’s biggest import partner in 2023 was the UK, accounting for €26 billion of Irish imports, but the UK’s share of total imports has fallen from 34 per cent to 19 per cent over the past 25 years.

The figures also show €22 billion worth of exports were sent to Asia in 2023, and one-fifth of total Irish imports, of which China accounted for €9 billion. Ireland imported €5.7 billion more from Asia than the country exported in 2023.

Moreover, Ireland exported €1.8 billion of goods to Africa in 2023 and imported €1 billion. €868 million was exported to South America and almost €1 billion to Oceania in 2023, the CSO added.

The CSO also states that exports of chemicals and related products accounted for almost two-thirds of total exports, with a value of €126 billion. Machinery and transport equipment accounted for 13 per cent of exports and food and live animals were €14.4 billion, or 7 per cent of the total, while machinery and transport made up 38 per cent of total imports, with a value of over €53 billion, including imports of aircrafts.

Imports of chemicals and related products accounted for 28 per cent, while food and live animals imports accounted for 7 per cent, the CSO added.

While these numbers show that overall, the State is exporting more than it is importing, (a positive metric in global trade), the value of Irish exports declined by 6 per cent in the first nine months of 2023 compared to the previous year according to the CSO.

However the CSO qualified this “against the backdrop of a broader global slowdown in trade, brought about by rising interest rates and declining consumer demand”.

In September 2023, the State exported €16 billion worth of goods around the world, down €3.5 billion or 18 per cent compared with September 2022. Good exports fell by a total of €9.7 billion over the first nine months of the year, a 6 per cent drop-off from the same period of last year with a notable 15 per cent decline in exports to the US.

Commenting on the release, Ciarán Counihan, statistician in the International Trade in Goods Division, said: “In 2023, Ireland exported more than €196 billion worth of goods and imported €140 billion. Exports of chemicals and related products accounted for almost two-thirds of total exports, with a value of more than €126 billion.”