Companies › Business confidence
Business confidence by sector
How firms rate their business right now, from the European Commission's monthly surveys. Ireland's sector-wide readings, and the EU reading for each of 59 activities.
Ireland
| Indicator | Ireland | 12m change | Percentile since 2005 | EU | Month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry confidence | -2.6 | -15.9 | 7 | -4.4 | Oct 2026 |
| Services confidence | 24.8 | +15.1 | 51 | 6.0 | Oct 2026 |
| Retail confidence | 4.9 | -0.9 | 49 | -5.8 | Oct 2026 |
| Construction confidence | 24.6 | +5.7 | 82 | -7.1 | Oct 2026 |
| Economic sentiment (ESI) | 91.6 | -6.9 | 16 | 96.9 | Oct 2026 |
| Employment expectations (EEI) | 97.2 | +4.7 | 34 | 98.9 | Oct 2026 |
| Consumer confidence | -23.1 | -5.2 | 21 | -17.3 | Oct 2026 |
ESI and EEI are indices (long-run average 100); the others are balances (% improving minus % deteriorating). Green: above Ireland's own average since 2005.
EU confidence by activity
Sorted from strongest to weakest against each activity's own history (standard deviations from its 2005+ average). Ireland's activity-level figures stop in Jan 2023; its last reading is shown for reference.
| Activity | Survey | EU | vs history | 12m change | Hiring plans | Price plans | Ireland, Jan 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other transport equipment | Industry | 25.4 | +1.7σ | +15.8 | +28.9 | +23.2 | 0.0 |
| Legal and accounting | Services | 15.5 | +1.1σ | +5.2 | +6.9 | +17.9 | 22.0 |
| Printing | Industry | -3.6 | +1.1σ | +4.1 | -2.6 | +13.1 | 30.0 |
| Construction of buildings | Construction | -1.5 | +0.9σ | +0.5 | +7.5 | +18.7 | 0.7 |
| Information services | Services | 13.4 | +0.8σ | +5.2 | +9.4 | +10.7 | – |
| Textiles | Industry | -10.2 | +0.5σ | +7.5 | -2.8 | +24.5 | 29.2 |
| Computer, electronic and optical products | Industry | 4.0 | +0.5σ | +10.1 | +20.4 | +25.3 | 14.6 |
| Motor vehicle repair and maintenance | Retail | 0.7 | +0.5σ | +3.0 | +5.4 | +23.8 | 15.6 |
| Head offices and management consultancy | Services | 11.7 | +0.5σ | +11.5 | +4.2 | +5.2 | 59.8 |
| Automotive fuel retail | Retail | 0.0 | +0.4σ | +1.1 | -6.0 | +23.8 | 2.7 |
| Postal and courier | Services | 0.2 | +0.4σ | +8.2 | -6.2 | +10.4 | 0.0 |
| Office and business support | Services | 5.0 | +0.3σ | +6.0 | -2.5 | +9.8 | 3.8 |
| Electrical equipment | Industry | -0.6 | +0.3σ | +11.2 | -0.8 | +23.2 | -20.0 |
| Advertising and market research | Services | 8.1 | +0.3σ | +7.3 | -10.7 | +11.4 | 23.4 |
| Film, TV and music production | Services | 3.5 | +0.3σ | +9.3 | -3.3 | -4.2 | 33.3 |
| Real estate | Services | 6.4 | +0.3σ | -2.7 | -0.9 | +10.1 | -4.0 |
| Accommodation | Services | 10.1 | +0.3σ | +3.7 | -4.9 | +12.1 | 16.7 |
| Fabricated metal products | Industry | -3.6 | +0.2σ | +8.5 | -0.8 | +25.6 | -13.2 |
| Specialised construction | Construction | -6.1 | +0.2σ | -3.7 | +3.0 | +11.4 | 21.0 |
| Water transport | Services | 5.9 | +0.2σ | +4.7 | +9.8 | +0.0 | 0.0 |
| Civil engineering | Construction | -7.5 | +0.2σ | -8.5 | +0.0 | +7.4 | 48.9 |
| Telecommunications | Services | 12.4 | +0.2σ | +1.6 | -14.3 | +20.5 | -66.7 |
| Other professional services | Services | 5.1 | +0.2σ | +1.4 | -1.2 | +9.5 | 10.2 |
| Basic metals | Industry | -6.7 | +0.1σ | +11.5 | -1.3 | +37.3 | 40.8 |
| Rubber and plastics | Industry | -6.1 | +0.1σ | +8.5 | -2.7 | +20.4 | 7.7 |
| Food and beverage service | Services | -0.7 | +0.1σ | +2.9 | -3.7 | +15.6 | 28.7 |
| Repair and installation of machinery | Industry | -3.6 | +0.1σ | -1.8 | -2.9 | +11.2 | 1.0 |
| Architecture and engineering | Services | 6.7 | +0.1σ | +2.5 | +5.3 | +11.6 | 13.9 |
| Rental and leasing | Services | 9.0 | +0.0σ | +8.7 | -5.5 | +11.8 | 37.1 |
| Building services and landscaping | Services | 5.2 | +0.0σ | -1.9 | +1.8 | +23.9 | -6.3 |
| Machinery and equipment | Industry | -3.8 | -0.0σ | +8.8 | -0.9 | +21.8 | 16.2 |
| Security and investigation | Services | 1.3 | -0.1σ | -3.3 | +4.4 | +13.3 | – |
| Motor vehicle trade and repair | Retail | -6.9 | -0.1σ | +1.5 | -1.5 | +19.1 | 8.7 |
| Motor vehicles | Industry | -3.9 | -0.1σ | +2.4 | -24.3 | +21.2 | 14.2 |
| Beverages | Industry | -3.3 | -0.2σ | +4.6 | +3.9 | +22.7 | 4.8 |
| Other manufacturing | Industry | -2.9 | -0.2σ | -0.5 | +8.6 | +16.3 | 71.0 |
| Retail trade | Retail | -5.0 | -0.2σ | -1.5 | -3.4 | +25.2 | 12.8 |
| Other retail | Retail | -8.8 | -0.2σ | -2.2 | -4.0 | +20.2 | 10.8 |
| Non-metallic mineral products | Industry | -14.4 | -0.2σ | +1.0 | -4.8 | +17.8 | 7.5 |
| Warehousing and transport support | Services | 0.9 | -0.2σ | -0.9 | -5.5 | +27.2 | 98.6 |
| Computer programming and consultancy | Services | 13.9 | -0.3σ | +2.1 | +2.6 | +16.1 | 42.5 |
| Travel agencies and tour operators | Services | 1.9 | -0.3σ | -7.1 | +11.3 | +35.3 | 65.4 |
| Food products | Industry | -3.9 | -0.3σ | +0.8 | +4.1 | +24.9 | 29.0 |
| Furniture | Industry | -12.6 | -0.3σ | +0.2 | -7.3 | +19.9 | 1.4 |
| Land transport | Services | -4.0 | -0.3σ | -3.0 | -0.6 | +24.7 | 7.9 |
| Motor vehicle sales | Retail | -10.0 | -0.3σ | -1.5 | -6.9 | +14.2 | 0.3 |
| Wood products | Industry | -13.5 | -0.4σ | -4.3 | -1.3 | +15.9 | 23.0 |
| Employment activities | Services | 4.9 | -0.4σ | +7.9 | +18.1 | +7.4 | 66.7 |
| Scientific R&D | Services | 5.0 | -0.4σ | +5.5 | +3.5 | +16.2 | 16.7 |
| Pharmaceuticals | Industry | 2.4 | -0.5σ | +3.3 | +7.9 | +14.4 | 5.9 |
| Publishing | Services | -9.1 | -0.5σ | +6.2 | -26.5 | +16.5 | 0.0 |
| Chemicals | Industry | -9.5 | -0.6σ | +9.6 | -12.0 | +14.4 | 32.1 |
| Repair of computers and household goods | Services | -10.5 | -0.7σ | +6.3 | -9.0 | +13.6 | -4.4 |
| Leather products | Industry | -17.0 | -0.8σ | +2.1 | -8.5 | +15.1 | -1.2 |
| Paper products | Industry | -17.1 | -0.8σ | +4.1 | -5.0 | +30.8 | 13.9 |
| Wearing apparel | Industry | -21.7 | -0.9σ | +4.9 | -25.4 | +14.9 | -16.9 |
| Food, beverages and tobacco retail | Retail | -1.8 | -1.0σ | -1.6 | -2.7 | +34.9 | 11.7 |
| Coke and refined petroleum | Industry | -9.3 | -1.0σ | -3.9 | -14.7 | +10.0 | – |
| Broadcasting | Services | -20.6 | -1.5σ | -15.9 | -31.7 | +7.2 | 33.3 |
Source: European Commission, DG ECFIN, Business and Consumer Surveys, subsector series (NACE Rev. 2), seasonally adjusted. The Commission flags subsector series as not fully validated. Latest month Oct 2026.