European countries and exporting champions

Lithuania has the highest rate of two-way traders; Ireland among lowest

International goods trading is dominated by importers who just only import. In 2019, almost two-thirds of the EU firms were importers only. Domestic firms accounted for the majority of exports while foreign-controlled firms accounted for the majority of imports in the EU in 2019.

According to Eurostat two-way traders (who are importers and exporters) accounted for 24.0% with the remaining 10.6% who were only exporters.

Eurostat says the island nations of Malta (17.0%, 2018 data), Ireland (16.2%) and Cyprus (12.1%) recorded the lowest proportions of two-way traders, as around four-fifths of their enterprises engaged in trade were importers only. The highest share of exporters only was found in France (32.0%) — think of for example wine where it does not require significant foreign inputs.

Ireland's importers accounted for 79% of traders in 2019.

Ireland joined the European Economic Community in 1973 as the poorest member

Cover cartoon in the July 1956 edition of the satirical magazine 'Dublin Opinion' — ‘Shortly Available: Underdeveloped Country: Unrivalled Opportunities: Magnificent Views, Political and Otherwise: Owners Going Abroad.’ As the Irish political system remained in a state of stasis, other Western European countries were rebuilding. West Germany recorded a goods trade surplus in 1952 and it has been in the black since. The period 1950-1973 was called the Golden Age of Economic Growth in Western Europe. Real (inflation-adjusted) annual average compound growth rates were unprecedented according to Prof Angus Maddison: Greece grew 6.2% annually; West Germany and Italy expanded by 5% each year; France achieved 4%; Portugal and Spain logged 5.7% and 5.8% respectively. The UK had the lowest rate at 2.5%. Ireland's performance was at 3.1% as was Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland — the latter countries were growing from higher prewar bases. For example, in 1973 Swiss per capita GDP was 138% higher than Ireland's while Denmark's level was 104%.

The Irish Free State (Irish: Saorstát Éireann), a state established in 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921, existed from 6 December 1922 – 29 December 1937, when a new constitution became law and the state was called Ireland (Irish: Éire).

The population in 1841 in the area of the island that became the Irish Free State was 6.29m. The devastating Potato Famine of the 1840s followed by huge emigration and a dip in marriage rates, resulted in a population of 3.22m in 1901 and 2.97m in the first census as an independent state in 1926.

The nadir was in 1961 when the population fell to 2.82m.

The shameful stain of an Irish Civil War 100 years ago

This article was first published in January 2020.

Dublin Castle, the seat of Norman/English and later British rule from 1204-1922 was handed over to the Irish on January 16, 1922, by Lord FitzAlan-Howard, the last Viceroy of Ireland. Michael Collins, the 31-year old chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State, is pictured 'bouncing’ out through the Chief Secretary’s door after the handover. Collins is preceded by Kevin O'Higgins, who had been appointed Minister for Economic Affairs in the previous week. The new government issued a statement which said, ‘"The Members of the Provisional Government received the surrender of Dublin Castle at 1.45 pm today. It is now in the hands of the Irish nation." A unit of the Royal Corps of Engineers remained at the castle until August 1922. (Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland)

At 2:20 am on December 6, 1921, British and Irish delegations signed an Anglo-Irish Treaty in 10 Downing Street, London, which provided for dominion status for an Irish Free State comprising 26 counties of Ireland, with a similar status as "the Dominion of Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of New Zealand, and the Union of South Africa," in the British Empire. The British Government of Ireland Act 1920 had provided for the partition of the island and Northern Ireland comprising 6 counties in the northeast had its own parliament since June 1921.