Irish GDP surges ahead in 3 months

DUBLIN: Irish gross domestic product growth sped up in the three months to the end of September, expanding by 4 per cent quarter-on-quarter to stand 6.9 per cent higher than it was a year ago, data showed on Friday. Ireland’s economic growth rate is forecast to be the highest in the European Union for a third successive year in 2016, but data were mixed in the three months after Britain voted in June to leave the European Union, a major risk to neighbouring Ireland’s economy. The quarterly jump, which followed a weaker-than-expected start to the year for GDP, was driven by a 0.7 per cent quarterly rise in personal consumption. — Reuters