Irish economy grows by 5.5% in GDP terms in third quarter

The Irish economy grew by more than 5 per cent in the third quarter despite the inflation shock, according to Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The agency said provisional estimates indicate that gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 5.5 per cent between July and September when compared with the previous quarter.

“The result was driven mainly by increases in the multinational-dominated sectors of industry and information and communication in Q3 2026,” it said.

The GDP metric is increasingly seen as a bad gauge of domestic activity because of contract manufacturing (where goods are produced abroad but included in Irish exports) and other multinational-led activities.

It is a better indicator of multinational exports.

AIB said in its latest bulletin that it expected the economy here to grow by 3.8 per cent this year using the CSO’s bespoke measure of growth, GNI*.

It also noted that AI-related spending connected with the fit-out of data centres and general investment by Irish-based companies in the tech sector was fuelling this growth while warning inflation was likely to peak at 4-5 per cent.

Separate data published by the Central Bank indicated the net financial wealth of Irish households increased by €31.8 billion in the second quarter to reach €473 billion.

“Positive revaluations contributed €29.8 billion to this movement,” it said.

Net financial wealth excludes property and land assets. When they are included, household wealth is valued at €1.4 trillion.

This equates to approximately €268,000 per person in the State.

The increase in recent years has been driven by higher property values, which account for more than two-thirds of household wealth.

“Overall, the Irish economy remained a net lender vis-a-vis the rest of the world in the period, as net investment in financial assets exceeded the net incurrence of financial liabilities by €67.9 billion,” the Central Bank said in its latest quarterly financial accounts.

Government financial assets stood at €156.1 billion in the second quarter, while liabilities totalled €234 billion.

“At the end of the quarter, the government’s net financial wealth stood at -€77.9 billion, representing a continued improvement in its net financial position,” it said.