Economy, Finance, Industry, and Trade in Northern Ireland
- Northern Ireland is currently enjoying a period of economic growth
- Output and employment rising and unemployment falling
- GDP*per head in Northern Ireland increased almost by 58%, this compares with a 49.9% increase in the UK as a whole, but still remains lower than the rest of the UK
- In 1997, average gross weekly earnings in Northern Ireland were £319.70 compared to £372.20 in England
- Manufacturing output in Northern Ireland has increased significantly over the past 5 years, and at a faster rate of growth than that of the UK as a whole
- Industrial production in Northern Ireland increased in the 5 years between 1991-1996 by nearly 17%, whilst the rest of the UK increased by only 11.7%
- House prices in Northern Ireland are rising at a significantly faster rate than the general UK rate of inflation
- Over the past 2 years, leading supermarket chains in Britain have made major investments in Northern Ireland and created thousands of new jobs
- In 1997-1998, the highest proportion of public expenditure in Northern Ireland (32.12%) was spent on Social Security, and 11.25% was spent on law and order
- There is a considerable amount of cross-border trade between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, with the Republic being Northern Ireland's No. 1
- Northern Ireland has experienced a trade deficit with the Republic of Ireland every year since 1981
- Agriculture is an important industry in Northern Ireland
- It employs almost 60,000 people and is worth more than £1 billion per year to the economy
- The number of farms in Northern Ireland has decreased over the past number of years, whilst the size of farms has actually increased
- A huge proportion (78.8%) of land in Northern Ireland is currently under cultivation for grazing, crops, forestry, and frui
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