The flow of multinational investment into Ireland accelerated in the first six months of 2025 despite the uncertainty around US tariffs.
IDA Ireland’s latest half-year report said the agency supported 179 investments in the six months to June with the potential to create more than 10,000 jobs.
The level of investments was 37 per cent up on the same period last year and also up on the 8,900 job commitments delivered for the six-month period last year.
IDA Ireland chief Michael Lohan later confirmed that around 65 per cent of the investments were by US firms, slightly higher than last year.
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The agency’s figures come a week before US president Donald Trump is due to reimpose steep tariffs on EU goods imports, a move that could seriously disrupt transatlantic trade.
Mr Trump has threatened to apply a 50 per cent import tax on most EU imports from July 9th.
Asked if he thought 10 per cent tariffs on EU exports to the US with carve-outs for the pharma and semiconductor sectors represented a win for Ireland, a position that many inside the talks is now looking more likely, Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke said he did not see “any tariff as a win”.
A new 10 per cent tariff baseline would representative an additional level of tariffs for many businesses in the agri-food sector here and that would be a “concern,” he said.
“Tariffs are bad. They constrain supply. They cause supply chain shortages and in essence make goods more expensive for consumers in both countries,” he said.
The IDA said 52 of the investments announced so far this year “will be new or first-time investments into the country” while 43 are research, development and innovation (RD&I) projects, “reflecting Ireland’s growing international reputation as a location for cutting edge innovation”.
The FDI sector here now employs over 302,000 workers.
A further 41 investments will be expansions from existing client companies.
“Today’s figures demonstrate Ireland’s continued attractiveness as a trusted partner and a proven investment location, speaking to our many strengths in areas such as innovation and talent as well as our stable, pro-enterprise business landscape,” Mr Lohan said.
“It also points to our resilience in the face of continuing global economic uncertainty,” he said.
The IDA’s report highlighted stability and access to skilled workers, “coupled with the country’s position as a strategic hub for technological innovation” as primary reasons for companies to locate in Ireland.
It also flagged several high-profile investments including Squarespace, the design-driven platform that helps entrepreneurs build brands, which has announced the creation of over 120 new jobs in Dublin and health data company Datavant, which opened its global R&D centre in Galway that is to employ up to 125 people.
Other companies this year have taken decisions to invest significantly in their existing Irish operations, it said, noting these included healthcare company GE HealthCare, which is investing €132 million in expanding and upgrading its Cork facility and Ericsson, which announced a €200 million RD&I investment in Athlone.
