Deirdre O Meara 
The value of services output in Ireland grew steadily in December, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The final month of 2022 saw a 0.2% month-on-month increase and 10.9% year-on-year growth, with the volume of services rendered rising 2.5% from November and 6.9% from December 2021.
Blog Body: In terms of value growth on a monthly basis, other services activities (+3.9%) was the sector was the highest level of growth, ahead of information & communication (+0.8%) and transportation & storage (+0.1%).
On the other hand, wholesale & retail trade (-2.9%), accommodation & food services (-2.3%), administrative & support service activities (-0.9%), and professional, scientific & technical activities (-0.1%) all registered monthly value declines.
Annually, most sectors recorded value growth, led by accommodation & food services which saw an impressive 54.7% increase in activity compared to December 2020 levels this is likely due to a surge in online sales over Christmas as people switched to digital shopping experiences amid ongoing pandemic restrictions across Ireland’s hospitality industry.
Other sectors such as information & communications (17%), professional, scientific & technical activities (14%), and administrative & support service activities (14%) also recorded notable gains when compared to the same period last year.
