Some 45% of Irish businesses are fearful of the negative exchange implications presented by the recent Brexit vote, a study by business representative group Ibec has found.
The group said that the study, which comprised a survey of 450 business owners, ‘highlights the intense currency strain on exporters following the UK vote’.
As well as exchange rate fears, the study also found that cheaper UK imports wer cited as the biggest risk by one third of respondents (33%), while less than a tenth (9%) of businesses currently have Brexit contingency plans in place.
Meanwhile, only one in four exporting businesses have currency hedging arrangements it place.
Ibec director of policy Fergal O'Brien said, “The Brexit strain is manifest and intense. Without urgent action to address competitive pressures, hundreds of millions of euro worth of exports and thousands of Irish jobs will be lost.
“Individual businesses have been slow to talk publicly, but the feedback from members is clear and unambiguous. Businesses and jobs are already under threat.
“This is now a full blown currency crisis. For exporters, the speed of sterling’s decline is on a par with the 1992 currency crisis. Irish exporters to the UK are already 15% less competitive and things could get much worse. The problem demands urgent government attention.”
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
