Irish manufacturing output rose in May, as employment in the sector increased for the first time in more than two years, and new orders continued to grow.
The NCB manufacturing PMI rose from 53.4 to 54.1, staying above the 50 mark that indicates expansion rather than contraction.
Employment showed surprise growth in the sector, breaching the 50 mark for the first time since November 2007, indicating that more firms added jobs than cut them.
Some 17.1 per cent of firms increased employment, with only 11.3 per cent cutting it and 71.6 per cent holding employment steady.
"Manufacturing sector employment is far smaller than services employment, but nonetheless this is a really positive development as the multiplier effects from increased manufacturing employment will aid the recovery in the more domestically orientated services sector," NCB said in a statement.
"In short, the cyclical recovery in Ireland continues to gain momentum."
The output component of the index continued to rise strongly during the month, growing to 58, the third month of expansion. This follows April's recording of 58.2, with NCB noting it was "much faster" than the long-run series average.
Fragile domestic demand hit new orders, which saw its rate of growth ease for the second month running, but the index remained at 54.9. Export orders, meanwhile, surged to 59.2.
