Gateway’s decision to shut its Irish operation with the loss of 900 jobs is unlikely to be an isolated incident as the slowing global economy takes hold in Ireland.
According to Mr Barry Dixon, technology analyst at Davy stockbrokers, those most at risk are hardware (PCs, printers, storage) and communication equipment companies - two areas where the recent slowdown appears to have hit the hardest.
Companies operating in Ireland that fall into this category include Hewlett Packard, Xerox and EMC.
"To date, job losses in Ireland have been surprisingly low given the severity of the global slowdown in IT demand," Mr Dixon said. But he warned: "With no signs of an improvement it seems inevitable that further job losses are likely".
The news of Gateway’s departure was disappointing but came as no major surprise as the US company struggled to maintain its share of the PC market in a price war with main rivals Compaq and Dell.
Mr Dixon noted 2001 was the first year when PC sales actually fell in Europe. The overall impact of declining prices and unit shipments has been a rapid deterioration in Gateway's profitability, with the company reporting losses in the last three quarters.
The Gateway closure has also prompted calls for the Government to look at its policy on industrial development.
General Secretary of the Irish National Organisation for the Unemployed Mr Tony Monks called on the Government to identify other potential vulnerable industries.
He said: "The country has been swept by a wave of cross-sectoral job losses this year. We can only hope that the Gateway closure does not indicate a severe downturn in the computer industry in Ireland".
"Companies which have received substantial State investment must work closely with Government to prevent mass job losses," he said.