There was a sharp fall in Irish exports in February, according to data from the Central Statistics Office, although it appears that this was a result of sharp drops in chemicals and pharmaceuticals sales that account for nearly half of all exports rather than the coronavirus. Seasonally adjusted exports fell by €2.2bn or 16pc €11.6bn. But the biggest hits to exports illustrate Ireland’s dependence on a small number of product lines that are largely sold in the US. Exports to the United States took a €700mn hit from February last year. Exports of organic chemicals decreased by €560mn to €2.3bn,319 million in February 2020 compared with February 2019, accounting for 20pc of total exports while exports of Medical and pharmaceutical products, 29pc of the total, also decreased by €578 million to €3.4bn.

Source: Irish Independent April 15, 2020 11:37 UTC