Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe is “optimistic” the recent Level-5 Covid-19 lockdown restrictions will have had a less damaging impact on the economy than the first lockdown earlier in the year. However, when profits from multinational exports are excluded, the economy actually shrank by nearly 2% in the quarter. However, when measured in GNP terms — which strips out multinational profits — the economy shrank by 1.9% in the third quarter. Minister Donohoe said the headline GDP figure “is not an accurate measure of what is going on in the economy,” given the size of the multinational sector. The recent six-week lockdown, as part of the Level 5 restrictions, is sure to have resulted in a further shrinking in the domestic economy, but Mr Donohoe said he remains upbeat.

Source: Irish Examiner December 04, 2020 11:58 UTC