Quarterly Economic Commentary, Autumn 2020

This Commentary highlights the major disparity in the impact of COVID-19 on the Irish economy. Many sectors of the domestic economy have been severely affected with widescale job losses in areas such as accommodation, food, arts and entertainment. The unemployment rate stood at 14.7 per cent in September which is much higher than the pre-pandemic level. Household spending and modified investment declined by 22 and 24 per cent respectively in the second quarter. On the other hand, exports have held up very well driven by the strong performance of medicinal and pharmaceutical products and computer services.