Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on January 9, 2026
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleIrish consumer sentiment remained low at the end of 2025 despite economic growth, with concerns over living costs and trade impacting confidence.
DUBLIN, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Irish consumer sentiment finished 2025 on a subdued note as concerns over living costs continued to dampen confidence, despite the economy's strong growth, a survey found on Friday.
The Credit Union Consumer Sentiment Survey rose only slightly to 61.2 in December, from 61.0 in November.
Consumer confidence has barely moved from April's two-year low of 58.7 at the height of U.S. tariff concerns, and is far lower than both the reading of 73.9 a year ago and the long-term survey average of 83.6.
By contrast, consumers' mood across the euro zone and in neighbouring Britain has improved since also plunging in April on trade-related concerns.
"The past year has seen a broadly based downgrade of Irish consumer thinking in relation to economic conditions and their own financial circumstances," the survey's authors wrote.
"Given the importance of the U.S. to the Irish economy, it might be expected that trade concerns would weigh heavily on the thinking of Irish consumers."
Ireland's economy as measured by modified domestic demand (MDD) - officials' preferred metric - has defied cautious sentiment and recent worries over the impact of tariffs, growing by 4.1% year-on-year in the first nine months of 2025.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Catarina Demony)
Consumer sentiment refers to the overall attitude of consumers towards the economy and their personal financial situation, which can influence their spending and saving behaviors.
Consumer confidence measures how optimistic or pessimistic consumers are regarding their expected financial situation and the overall economic outlook, affecting their spending decisions.
A consumer sentiment survey is a research tool used to gauge the attitudes and expectations of consumers regarding economic conditions and their personal financial situations.
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