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Residential property accounts for more than half of Ireland's total net stock of fixed capital assets, new data from the Central Statistics Office showed today.

The stock of dwellings was valued at €302.47 billion in 2008, more than 60 per cent of the State's €477 billion fixed capital assets in the year.

The data exclude natural assets such as land, mineral deposits, but takes into account buildings and structures, machines and equipment cultivated assets such as livestock fior breeding and intangible fixed assets such as software, art and mineral exploration.

Of the remainder of Ireland's capital assets, other buildings and structures accounted for 26 per cent, while machinery and equipment accounted for 6 per cent. Transport equipment represented almost 4 per cent of the total.

The total net stock of capital assets rose 67 per cent during the 10-year period from 1999 to 2008, with the stock of dwellings rising two-thirds andthe net stock of transport equipment, including business cars, trucks and aircraft more than doubled during this period.

"These developments took place during a period of rapid growth in the economy during which time GDP rose by 86 per cent," the CSO said.