Irish public finances are very strong, thanks to careful management of spending and substantial corporate tax windfalls. The country has consistently run budget surpluses over the past years. As a result, and thanks to strong nominal GDP growth, the public debt-to-GDP ratio has dropped substantially. Healthy public finances provide Ireland with strong buffers to mitigate potential future negative shocks hitting the economy.

On the external front, the country runs massive current account surpluses, thanks to strong exports of high valued-added goods and services (including intellectual property). However, data on external finances should be taken with caution, as they partly relate to tax optimization strategies of multinational firms. Ireland’ inflated external debt, for instance, can be explained by very large amount of inward investment whose purpose is to reduce global tax liabilities.  

The possibility that the US may try to reduce tax avoidance schemes could pose a threat to the external and fiscal position. Inward FDIs could drop corporate income revenues decrease. However, the impact on the real economy would be manageable and Ireland’s public finances can also manage. Besides, multinationals may find ways around new tax rules. Finally, Ireland would retain a competitive tax regime, limiting the degree to which multinationals would scale back their ‘real’ activity taking place in the country. 

Ireland's business environment is very strong, scoring highly in regulatory quality, rule of law and corruption control. Overall, it had the 3rd best ranking of economic freedom in the world in 2025. 

Ireland also has a very well-educated labor force and enjoys a significant openness to foreign trade and FDI. In particular, starting a business, protecting minority investors, paying taxes and resolving insolvencies are ranked at the top among other OECD high-income countries. Going forward, the introduction of the minimum global corporate tax reform is expected to only modestly dampen Ireland's attractiveness, amid significant strengths of the Irish economy that will attractive to corporates. 

On sustainability, our proprietary Environmental Sustainability Index places Ireland at 33th out of 210 economies. Ireland scores well on low CO2 emissions and low water stress, but is lagging behind some peers on recycling, energy use and renewable electricity production.

Ireland's recent political developments are centered around the aftermath of the 2024 general election, which highlighted a fragmented political landscape. Despite expectations, Sinn Féin's anticipated surge in support did not materialize. Instead, the centrist coalition of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael emerged with relative strength but fell short of a majority, necessitating complex coalition negotiations. Economically, the government’s policies aim at improving housing affordability (including an ambitious target of 300K homes built) and energy upgrades, but progress has been slow thus far.