Figures for the first quarter of 2010 show the country achieved a growth rate of 2.7 per cent, indicating that it has pulled out of the recession.

It is the first economic expansion recorded for several years and means that the downturn is technically at an end.

According to the Irish Central Statistics Office, seasonally-adjusted data for the first three months of the year show a 0.5 per cent dip in gross national product compared with the previous quarter, but a rise in gross domestic product, with increases noted in both imports and exports.

The news was welcomed by finance spokesman for the Green Party Senator Dan Boyle, who stated: "Recovery is on the way and we are beginning to see the fruits of many of the difficult decisions that have been made over the last 18 months."

He noted that the sluggish employment figures were partly influenced by a slew of school leavers joining the jobs market and forecast further improvements in economic data in the future.

Posted by Alex Donnell