An Overview of Developments in the Irish Economy over the Last Ten Years

摘要

What a difference a decade makes. At the time of the first Lehigh Uni-versity conference on the Irish economy in 2001, Irish real GDP was still growing at an annual rate of almost 6 per cent, following a decade where growth had averaged over 7 per cent. Unemployment had fallen from 16.8 per cent in 1986 to 4.4 per cent in 2007 (OECD standardised definition). The 'Celtic Tiger' economy was showing signs of ageing - notably with inflation eroding competitiveness and with it Ireland's attractiveness as a destination for FDI - but there was little sense of the 'bubble economy' that would fundamentally alter Irish economic fortunes over the following decade.