The economy grew by 4.1 per cent in the third quarter of this year, the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show.
GDP at constant prices was 4.1 per cent higher in the third quarter of 2007 compared with the same period of 2006.
The growth in GNP, which excludes the profits of foreign-owned enterprises, for the same period was 6 per cent.
Consumer spending in volume terms during the third quarter was 6.4 per cent higher than compared with the same period of the previous year.
Capital investment, in constant prices, in the period was 7.5 per cent lower than in the third quarter of 2006, the CSO said.
The volume of output of industry including construction increased by 6.2 per cent compared with the same period of the previous year. But within this, the output of the construction sector fell by 3.8 per cent over this period, the CSO said.
Separate figures show the Balance of Payments current account showed a deficit of €1,768 million in the third quarter of 2007, marginally higher than that for the previous quarter but almost €300 million up on the deficit of €1,471 million one year earlier .
Merchandise exports at €20,023 million were almost €1.3 billion lower than in the previous quarter and just over €600 million lower than in the third quarter of 2006.
Imports at €14,135 million were also down (€400 million) on the second quarter but up over €500 million compared to one year earlier.