Most statistics in National Accounts are for the whole country. County Incomes and Regional GDP shows how different counties and groups of counties within the country are faring. The country in total might have strong economic growth, but some areas might be left behind, or some counties might be doing well while the country as a whole is in recession. County Incomes gives detailed information that allows for geographical analysis within the accounts.
The two important national indicators that are analysed by region are Household Gross Disposable Income and Gross Domestic Product. Household Disposable Income is the money available to satisfy people’s needs and wants and to add to Household wealth. It is thus an important indicator of the economic welfare of the population. If a county has high income, but also a large population, that will mean there is less to go around, and a county with lower total income might have more for each household. For this reason, Gross Disposable Income is shown per person.
Gross Domestic Product, and the related Gross Value Added indicate the value of goods and services produced in a region. As with Gross Disposable Income, GVA is shown in total and per person. Not all of this value remains in the area to go to households, as, for example, when profits of an enterprise go to owners who are elsewhere. Gross Value Added is also shown split into three sectors within each region: agriculture, forestry and fishing; manufacturing, building and construction; and services.
The counties are grouped together in what are known as NUTS Regions based on the Regional Assemblies. The NUTS system is used for regions throughout the EU and stands for Nomenclature des Unités territoriales statistiques (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics).
While Ireland is a relatively small country, there are important regional variations in economic growth and incomes which are shown in the County Incomes and Regional GDP.