Irish economy returns to growth

The Republic's economy had waned in the second quarter after exiting recession in the first three months of the year. Figures released by the Central Statistics Office also show Ireland's GNP rose by 1.1%, the first time since the fourth quarter of 2007 both measures registered a quarterly increase. The industry sector and exports led the economy's recovery, with the growth in net exports outweighing the fall in domestic demand. Meanwhile agriculture was the only other sector to expand quarter-on-quarter. However, compared with the third quarter of 2009, Ireland's GDP decreased by ...