Business leaders today criticised those who have suggested the country is on the verge of a severe economic downturn.
Insisting the gloomy forecasts are way off the mark, Small Firms' Association chairman Pat Crotty urged the Government to help create a climate of confidence.
He accepted the economy was slowing but said: "why are we suddenly on the verge of collapse? We are not and we need to shout it from the rooftops.
"We particularly need the Government and its agencies to speak out in support of the economy and thus inspire the confidence that is its life blood."
Mr Crotty told the SFA annual national conference in Dublin Castle of the successes in the economy.
According to the Central Statistics Office manufacturing growth in August is the highest in over a year; employment is up by more than 78,000 in the year to June; and new businesses set up in the year to June 2007 are double the average at the start of the decade.
Mr Crotty also said there had been "the desired correction" in house prices. He called on the Government to cut regulation to encourage business.
In the Business Regulation Forum Report 2007, it was estimated that excessive regulation cost Irish businesses €500 million each year," he said.
PA