Economy continues to thrive despite Brexit uncertainty
The economy is continuing to demonstrate its healthy state and last year the number of new company start-ups in Ireland reached a high of 22,774, up 1.2 per cent from 2018.
That’s according to business and credit risk finance analyst CRIF Vision-net who revealed that 2019 was the third consecutive record-breaking year for new company start-ups. The CRIF Vision-net 2020 Annual Review show that new company start-ups were the highest in CRIF Vision-net’s 29 year history.
Unsurprisingly Dublin was the area with the most new start-ups, followed by Cork. Almost half (47 per cent) of all new start-ups were set up in the capital in 2019, with Cork second at 10 per cent. That was almost as much as the next three locations combined: with Galway at 3.9 per cent, Limerick at 3.2 per cent and Kildare 3.1 per cent, accounting for a combined total of 2,379 start-ups.
Last year the number of Irish company start-ups exceeded company closures by over 10,400.
Professional services accounted for the majority (4,741 up 3.6 per cent) of all start-ups in 2019.
The financial sector (3,144, down 5.5 per cent) was the second most popular industry for start-ups, followed by social and personal services (2,996, up 11 per cent), construction (2,356, down 2 per cent), and wholesale and retail (2,055, up 5 per cent).
Insolvencies
There has been a steady year-on-year reduction in Irish insolvencies since 2011, except for a slight increase in 2017. 2019’s company insolvency figure is down 18 per cent on the previous year (617 vs 756).
Professional services was the industry with the most insolvencies, accounting for 98 insolvencies (or 16 per cent), followed by the wholesale and retail industry (87 or 14 per cent), hospitality (66 or 11 per cent), construction (56 or 9 per cent), and manufacturing (41 or 7 per cent).
Christine Cullen, Managing Director of CRIF Vision-net, said: “As we look to 2020, the UK’s final legal withdrawal from the EU, coupled with the fact that Ireland is now in a mature stage of growth, presents undeniable challenges for businesses. However, our latest CRIF Vision-Net annual figures show that the Irish economy is continuing to grow despite them.
“2019 was a record-breaking year for new company registrations for the third year in a row. While this trend of steady year-on-year growth is good news, it is also worth noting that company start-ups in Ireland have outnumbered company closures every year over the past ten years,” she said.
“There is a certain degree of comfort that can be drawn from these figures, as they help to display the robustness of the Irish economy during a period of great uncertainty.
“However, we cannot become complacent. In light of recent Brexit developments, it is crucial that businesses remain observant and adaptable. It is both the responsibility of Irish companies and the Irish government to work in tandem to ensure that there are measures in place to safeguard the future of the economy.
“Although there is no comprehensive answer as to what Brexit means for the Irish economy, we must prepare for disruption in order to best position ourselves,” Ms Cullen added.