The Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency (NISRA) has published its economic stats for the first part of 2020, directly highlighting the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown.
Covid-19 has definitely made its mark on the Northern Ireland economy, and this week we got the first official stats showing the direct impact of the lockdown. The new stats from the Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency (NISRA) cover the first quarter of the year from January through to the end of March, so it covers the start of the lockdown.
The service sector saw a drop of 4.2% in real terms over the quarter, with a drop in business services and financial services down by 7.6%. Production was also hit by 3.2% over the quarter, with repair and sale of vehicles, accommodation, and the food service sector bearing the brunt of the impact.
These statistics give us a very brief window in the point just after the lockdown officially started, so the true impact of the lockdown in the long-term will become apparent when the next quarter's stats come out. Even so, this quarter's decrease in the NI index was the largest quarterly drop since the index began in 2005.
All eyes are now on the various Q2 2020 reports, which are expected to be released over the coming months and will give an indication of longer term business trends and how business has evolved voer the course of the lockdown.
Source: Written based on press release
