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Éireann go Brách ‽ — Why Now?
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Éireann go Brách ‽

Oh, I’m sorry, that should read “Ireland going broke?”… well actually the BBC reports Irish economy goes into recession

The Irish Republic’s economy has fallen into recession after shrinking for a second quarter in succession.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) said gross domestic product (GDP) had contracted by 0.5% in the three months to the end of June.

The economy had shrunk by 0.3% in the first quarter of the year. Technically, a recession is defined as two or more successive quarters of negative growth.

It is the first time Ireland has experienced a recession since 1983.

The economy is now facing its most difficult period since high unemployment and emigration hit in the early 1980s.

Economists pointed to the collapse of a decade-long bonanza in Ireland’s property market, coupled with a slump in construction activity.

It shows you what a great “investment” a house isn’t. You can’t have a recession without a housing slump, and until housing picks up you aren’t going to have a recovery.

2 comments

1 hipparchia { 09.25.08 at 7:29 pm }

yanno… ireland is one of the countries we’ve offshored some of our jobs to, and iirc, that was one of the boosts to their until-recently rising economy.

2 Bryan { 09.25.08 at 8:40 pm }

The housing bubble is bursting all over Europe with recession to follow. The Irish just happened to be first.