Unadjusted goods exports were €18 billion, an increase of almost €4.5 billion compared with May 2021.
Unadjusted goods imports were €12.8 billion, which was €4 billion higher than imports in May 2021.
Seasonally adjusted goods exports were €17.9 billion in May 2022, an increase of €259 million compared with April 2022.
Seasonally adjusted goods imports were €12.2 billion in May 2022, an increase of €387 million compared with April 2022.
Imports from Great Britain were €2 billion in May 2022, while exports to Great Britain were €1.5 billion.
Seasonally adjusted goods imports increased by €387 million (+3%) to €12,163 million in May 2022 compared with April 2022, according to preliminary figures.
Seasonally adjusted goods exports increased by €259 million (+1%) to €17,901 million leading to a decrease of €128 million (-2%) in the seasonally adjusted trade surplus to €5,738 million in May 2022 compared with the previous month (see Table 2). Seasonal adjustment compares month-to-month data by removing fluctuations that may occur due to seasonal patterns in trade.
The (unadjusted)* value of goods exports increased by €4,471 million (+33%) to €18,019 million in May 2022 compared with May 2021. The value of goods exports for the period January to May 2022 increased by €21,937 million (+33%) to €88,126 million, when compared with the same time period of 2021.
Exports of Medical & Pharmaceutical Products increased by €2,737 million (+63%) to €7,072 million in May 2022 compared with May 2021. This represented 39% of total exports.
Exports of Professional, Scientific & Controlling Apparatus increased by €180 million (+33%) to €733 million.
Exports of Food & Live Animals increased by €285 million (+28%) to €1,302 million in May 2022 compared with May 2021.
Exports of Electrical Machinery, Apparatus, Appliances & Parts increased by €200 million (+19%) to €1,239 million (see Table 3).
The (unadjusted) value of goods imports increased by €4,044 million (+46%) to €12,803 million in May 2022 compared with May 2021. The value of goods imports for the period January to May 2022 increased by €14,287 million (+36%) to €53,601 million, when compared with the same time period of 2021.
Imports of Machinery Specialised For Particular Industries increased by €556 million (+366%) to €707 million (see Table 3).
Imports of Mineral Fuels, Lubricants & Related Products increased by €591 million (+142%) to €1,007 million in May 2022 compared with May 2021.
Imports of Organic Chemicals increased by €870 million (+71%) to €2,093 million, representing 16% of total imports in May 2022.
The value of goods imports for May 2022 excluding SITC 79 (Other Transport Equipment, Including Aircraft) increased by €4,323 million (+56%) to €12,007 million, compared with the corresponding May 2021 figure of €7,683 million (see Table 3).
Imports from Great Britain increased by €831 million (+71%) to €2,000 million compared with May 2021. The main increases were in the imports of Mineral Fuels, Lubricants & Related Materials and Chemicals & Related Products (see Table 5). Imports from Great Britain were 16% of the value of total imports in May 2022.
The value of goods imports from Great Britain for January to May 2022 increased by €4,014 million (+76%) to €9,272 million, compared with January to May 2021.
Exports to Great Britain in May 2022 increased by €319 million (+27%) to €1,518 million, compared with May 2021. The main change was an increase in the exports of Chemicals & Related Products and Machinery & Transport Equipment (see Table 5). Exports to Great Britain accounted for 8% of total exports in May 2022.
The value of goods exports to Great Britain for January to May 2022 increased by €1,668 million (+32%) to €6,927 million, compared with January to May 2021.
Imports from Northern Ireland for January to May 2022 increased by €357 million (+23%) to €1,939 million when compared with the same time period of 2021.
Exports to Northern Ireland for January to May 2022 increased by €586 million (+42%) to €1,974 million when compared with the same time period in 2021 (see Table 5).
| % | |
| NI | 2.44282530935027 |
| GB | 8.42632620419494 |
| EU27 | 34.9384493481292 |
| US | 30.0586533202595 |
| Rest of World | 25.1337458180661 |
| % | |
| NI | 2.95746084231976 |
| GB | 15.6191822003266 |
| EU27 | 27.0079022465383 |
| US | 14.8822370914473 |
| Rest of World | 38.5332176193681 |
The EU accounted for €6,295 million (35%) of total goods exports in May 2022 of which €2,019 million went to Germany, €1,279 million went to the Netherlands and €1,154 million went to Belgium. Total EU exports in May 2022 increased by €841 million (+15%) compared with May 2021.
The USA was the main non-EU destination accounting for €5,416 million (30%) of total exports in May 2022.
The EU accounted for €3,458 million (27%) of total goods imports in May 2022, which is an increase of €40 million (+1%) compared with May 2021.
The UK with €2,378 million (19%), the USA with €1,905 million (15%) and China with €1,573 million (12%) were the main non-EU sources of imports (see Table 4).
| X-axis label | EU 27 | Rest of World | UK | US |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2020 | 5.00668019271203 | 2.263880031 | 1.3782657604693 | 3.701794393 |
| Jan 2021 | 4.50623624117744 | 2.727675256 | 1.16292985708278 | 4.932282209 |
| Feb 2021 | 4.64207099819885 | 2.343243982 | 1.07783908838482 | 4.252122179 |
| Mar 2021 | 5.71069156633018 | 2.899116902 | 1.55585851818113 | 4.542633046 |
| Apr 2021 | 4.90713263466844 | 2.45698396000001 | 1.34918852232651 | 3.57577931 |
| May 2021 | 5.45478810269973 | 2.689996428 | 1.50140088056247 | 3.90149927 |
| Jun 2021 | 5.60214324394904 | 3.112772704 | 1.75320993601654 | 4.281263191 |
| Jul 2021 | 4.52685118279434 | 3.134559757 | 1.79083712755728 | 3.750234214 |
| Aug 2021 | 4.85342560065652 | 2.785794549 | 1.29805871461404 | 4.229442456 |
| Sep 2021 | 5.85619210292483 | 2.793674125 | 1.73716423676024 | 4.384452418 |
| Oct 2021 | 5.12918788059397 | 2.656838563 | 1.40791061856762 | 5.764283375 |
| Nov 2021 | 5.7871243995022 | 2.763566978 | 2.06671239289944 | 5.006429187 |
| Dec 2021 | 4.59705359451349 | 2.912657818 | 1.47677077364718 | 3.945519212 |
| Jan 2022 | 6.3497072426358 | 2.823560523 | 1.75599191806801 | 5.372329343 |
| Feb 2022 | 6.31571613814373 | 3.262968706 | 1.38969071989723 | 4.821169839 |
| Mar 2022 | 7.38065398319269 | 4.00371669999999 | 1.82654822823716 | 7.389662282 |
| Apr 2022 | 6.59491468802252 | 3.360974109 | 1.97003472392046 | 5.490122136 |
| May 2022 | 6.29541627829125 | 4.34856094399999 | 1.95846795282145 | 5.416145792 |
| X-axis label | EU 27 | Rest of World | UK | US |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2020 | 3.34781189233554 | 2.04357618851646 | 2.12610105441498 | 1.48609245314246 |
| Jan 2021 | 2.22133359098184 | 2.0256179252737 | 0.95910887825586 | 1.23461466810489 |
| Feb 2021 | 2.2216363060796 | 2.04033558811691 | 1.13696280288407 | 1.24780358320128 |
| Mar 2021 | 3.22380420572407 | 2.68432034898914 | 1.70030859810158 | 1.61071404313418 |
| Apr 2021 | 2.81846802469977 | 2.70676447761457 | 1.48920057588016 | 1.23441473238069 |
| May 2021 | 3.4181288019952 | 2.34016251437405 | 1.55399712735357 | 1.44673599207556 |
| Jun 2021 | 3.68653775830562 | 3.1218809127626 | 1.77837455295666 | 1.30265117268739 |
| Jul 2021 | 2.79174376634401 | 2.20922841169683 | 1.45866757908514 | 1.336498983027 |
| Aug 2021 | 2.14427927020579 | 2.4721595401711 | 1.60572716821421 | 1.58098671866229 |
| Sep 2021 | 2.54651358962204 | 2.54122225308268 | 1.73850218878597 | 1.63970936335317 |
| Oct 2021 | 2.68628975764719 | 2.78322891440016 | 1.93410238521967 | 1.5903038632994 |
| Nov 2021 | 3.50445688428574 | 3.33734020639254 | 1.97395856867565 | 1.59372048411895 |
| Dec 2021 | 3.31275530200272 | 3.14843514552838 | 2.16326869693528 | 2.17559744508009 |
| Jan 2022 | 2.69909599707745 | 3.25753377958301 | 2.12213853166915 | 1.2215691196796 |
| Feb 2022 | 2.77432301099801 | 2.90719118563513 | 1.91958974928771 | 1.21008880678096 |
| Mar 2022 | 3.10498910412734 | 3.99665050014854 | 2.35437264058145 | 1.85944626782333 |
| Apr 2022 | 3.73562211115641 | 3.49279510887424 | 2.43603548080885 | 1.70621408975928 |
| May 2022 | 3.45794508028061 | 5.06161841547981 | 2.37845245554684 | 1.90544078781743 |
Industrial Produce accounted for €16,790 million (93%) of total exports in May 2022. This is an increase of €4,157 million (+33%) when compared with May 2021. There was €5,728 million of this exported to the EU, €5,354 million to the USA and €1,551 million to the UK. Agricultural Produce accounted for €988 million (5%) of total exports (see Table 6).
Producer Capital Goods Ready For Use accounted for €2,003 million (16%) of total imports in May 2022, an increase of €369 million (+23%) when compared with May 2021.
Consumption Goods Ready For Use represented €2,506 million (20%) of total imports, and Materials For Further Production accounted for €8,052 million (63%) (see Table 7).
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (18 July 2022) released Goods Exports and Imports May 2022.
Commenting on the release, Ciarán Counihan, Statistician in International Trade in Goods Division, said: “In May 2022, Ireland’s unadjusted exports of goods were €18 billion. Imports were valued at €12.8 billion in May.
The increases in goods exports were driven mainly by growth in the exports of Medical & Pharmaceutical Products.
Imports from Great Britain grew by 71% to €2 billion in May 2022 compared with May 2021, driven mainly by increases in the imports of Mineral Fuels and Chemicals & Related Products.
It should be noted that the large growth rate in imports from Great Britain is partly explained by the relatively low level of imports in May 2021. May 2021 was the fifth month in which customs documentation was required for trade with Great Britain, which impacted on our trade with Great Britain.”