There has been an increase in the value of goods exported from Ireland using freight services, with exports totalling €111,038 million (£86,320.76) in the year leading to December 2015.
According to the Central Statistics Office, this is 19.9 per cent higher than the value of goods exported in 2014, at an increase of €18,422 million.
Similarly, the figures reveal imports have increased over the year, with annual imports totalling €67,023 million between January and December 2015, compared with €60,866 million the year before. This is a rise of 10.1 per cent.
Medical and pharmaceutical products accounted for a considerable number of exports last year, amounting to €30,174 million or 27 per cent of the total trade. The industries are clearly doing well, as this is 36 per cent higher than in 2014 when they totalled just €7,945.
Unsurprisingly, the largest exports were of food and live animals, and beverages and tobacco to the USA. These increased by 51 per cent or €255 million from 2014, and reached an impressive €758 million by the end of 2015.
It appears that Ireland is faring better than the UK with regards to its exports, after the Office for National Statistics recently revealed exports fell by 1.2 per cent or £500 million to £42.2 billion, the Guardian reported. This took them to their lowest value since July 2015.
Imports also dropped, falling by £800 million to £45.4 billion, which was the result of a decline in the import of fuels and unspecified goods. A £500 million deficit is regarded to be due to the lack of imports of oil.