Northern Ireland's exports increased by 8.5 per cent to £3.4 billion sterling (€5.7 billion) last year, due mainly to a 20 per cent increase in sales of manufactured products to markets outside Europe. The statistics show that the strength of sterling and problems faced by traditional industries were having a big effect on the Northern Ireland economy. Sales to the Republic and the EU were virtually static, while sales within Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK actually fell slightly.