By Business & Finance 
A report by the Irish Exporters Association shows significant growth in export sales with value of top five exporters increasing by 23.5% year-on-year.
Microsoft was named the largest exporting company in the 2015 edition of Top 250 Exporters in Ireland and Northern Ireland, published in association with Investec.
Data from the report shows strong growth in the manufacturing and services sectors with the value of exports from the top five exporters increasing by 23.5% on the previous year.
Microsoft’s export turnover increased by 21%, from €15bn in 2014 to €18.2bn in 2015.
Microsoft was followed by Google with export turnover of €17bn, Medtronic (3rd, export turnover of €16.7bn), Johnson & Johnson (4th, export turnover of €10.5bn) and Ingersoll Rand (5th, export turnover of €9.8bn).
Of the Top 20 companies listed, nine are focused within the ICT arena with seven in the medical and pharma sectors.
Richard Bruton TD, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, said: “Our exporting companies, both Irish and multinational, have delivered extraordinary achievements over the past four years, with year after year of record export results, and record levels of job-creation. Almost half of the 125,000 extra jobs that have been created have been in exporting companies. I am delighted to have this opportunity to formally recognise the incredible achievements of our exporting companies, wish them every success for the future, and pledge that we will continue to provide the supports you require to deliver the increased sales and ultimately the jobs we all need”.
Simon McKeever, chief executive, Irish Exporters Association, commented: “Irish exporters have and continue to play a significant role in the recovery of the Irish economy. While there have been some favourable developments such as Quantitative Easing in our largest single trading partner, the UK, and a continued strong dollar, that have helped make Irish exports more competitive, the success has also been built on strong foundations of quality, innovation and an underlying cost competitive proposition.”
