Gross National Product (GNP) increased by 10.4% at constant market prices in 2000, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office this morning.
The corresponding increase in GDP over the same period was somewhat higher at 11.5%.
In the five years since 1995 the economy has grown by 51% as measured by GNP at constant prices. At current market prices GDP increased by 16.2% in 2000 compared to 1999 while GNP increased by 14.9%.
Details of expenditure on GNP indicate that:
- Consumer spending maintained its buoyant trend with an increase of 15% in 2000. The increase in Government expenditure was 11.2%. When price rises are discounted the real increases in these sectors were 9.9% and 5.4%. The price increase in Consumer Spending is affected by the relatively high price increase for imputed rent of owner occupied dwellings.
- Investment in new buildings and capital equipment rose by 16.7% in money terms which is equivalent to 7% in real terms. The value of stocks rose by £226 million during 2000.
- Exports of goods and services exceeded imports by £11,562 million in 2000 as compared with £9,757 in 1999. This rise of £1,805 million in the export surplus was more than offset by an increase of £2,465 million in net factor income outflows to the rest of the world.
Meanwhile, CSO figures also show that industrial turnover in transportable goods industries increased by 11.4% in April 2001 when compared with the same month in 2000.
The unadjusted figures for February to April 2001, when compared with the same three month period in 2000, show there were increases of 34.7% for capital goods, 21.4% for intermediate products and 4.4% for consumer goods.
The sharpest increase was in' electrical machinery and apparatus, where turnover rose by 66.9% in the period.