The Irish manufacturing sector strengthened in February, according to a new report published today.
The NCB purchasing managers index found that conditions in manufacturing strengthened to 53.3 in February from 52.3 in January; any reading over 50 signals growth.
New orders also rose, helped by a recovery in export orders, which had fallen in January.
In the rest of the euro zone, manufacturing growth remained robust last month, while rises in prices charged stuck close to the fastest rate in at least four years, supporting expectations for higher rates.
The RBS/NTC Eurozone Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) came in as expected at 55.6 in February, slightly above the 55.5 reading in January and staying firmly in the growth area above 50.0.
The survey of around 3,000 manufacturers also suggested there may be upside risks to the PMI in the months ahead as output and new orders growth, an indicator of future demand, accelerated and export orders grew at a faster pace.
Analysts said that further cemented already unanimous expectations for a European Central Bank interest rate rise next week to 3.75 per cent and possibly another before long.