No matter how it plays out, Britain’s departure from the EU will have adverse consequences for Ireland, both north and south. The economy performed very well in the first half of 2019, but key sentiment indicators have weakened in the third quarter. This was the first contraction for Irish construction output since August 2013, and the cause was the effects of Brexit uncertainty. Imports from Britain fell by €77m to €1.38bn in August from the same month in 2018. Imports from Britain accounted for over a fifth of the value of total imports in the eighth month of this year.

Source: Irish Examiner October 21, 2019 04:41 UTC