Jim Higgins
Question:36 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Minister for Finance the amount of profits repatriated by foreign industries; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Foreign Industry Profits.
Separate data are not available for profit repatriations by foreign industry. They are included in the debit entry for "profits, dividends and royalties etc." in the balance of international payments statement published by the CSO. The latest published data refer to the fourth quarter and year 1989, and show that gross outflows of profits, dividends and royalties amounted to £2,337 million last year.
These outflows, to the extent that they relate to industry, should be seen in the context of the sector's turnover, which last year amounted to around £18 billion, and of industrial exports of almost £12 billion in 1989. The increase in outflows last year was associated with a very strong performance by manufacturing industry, with the volume of output growing by 12.7 per cent and the volume of manufactured exports increasing by an estimated 14 per cent. Reflecting this performance, average quarterly employment in manufacturing industry increased by 2.3 per cent last year — the first such increase since 1980. The growth of output, exports, and employment was mainly attributable to the high technology sector, which is predominantly foreign owned.
The ability to repatriate the profits earned by their Irish subsidiaries is an important factor in attracting foreign firms to locate here. The importance of such firms is illustrated by the fact that, in 1986, the latest year for which detailed statistics are available, foreign owned enterprises accounted for 41 per cent of total manufacturing employment. IDA data indicate that in 1989, foreign industry created 8,400 new jobs, bringing their total employment to 89,000 people; in 1988 they purchased £2.8 billion worth of goods and services in Ireland and in the period 1983 to 1989, their grant-aided investment in Ireland amounted to £1.3 billion.