Ireland’s trade surplus narrowed to EUR 2.87 billion in December 2025 from EUR 3.87 billion a year earlier, marking the smallest surplus since December 2023, as imports grew more rapidly than exports. On an annual basis, exports edged up 1.7% to EUR 16 billion, supported by a 2.7% rise in medical and pharmaceutical shipments, which accounted for 40% of total exports. This gain was partly offset by a 14.1% decline in exports of organic chemicals, which weighed on overall export performance.
Exports to the United States fell sharply, dropping 41.1% to EUR 3.3 billion, with chemical products making up the majority of shipments to that market. The US, the Netherlands, and Belgium remained Ireland’s main export destinations.
Imports, meanwhile, increased at a faster pace, rising 10.7% to EUR 13.1 billion. The growth was driven by higher purchases of medical and pharmaceutical products (+16.4%), organic chemicals (+6.8%), and office machines and automatic data-processing equipment (+89.8%). Ireland’s largest import partners were France (12.8% of total imports), the US (12.7%), and Great Britain (10.2%).
