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US Investment in Ireland
The Irish Government actively promotes Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), a strategy that saw total FDI stock grow to $190 billion in 2010. The Irish Government’s actions have had considerable success in attracting investment with 126 major announcements in 2010 creating 11,000 new jobs, 74% from the US.
Up to the recent past, the principal goal of state investment policy has been employment creation, especially in technology-intensive and high-skill industries. More recently the Irish Government has increasingly supported efforts by foreign-invested companies to sustain their international competitiveness through R&D enhancements, productivity improvements and the marketing/sales of higher-value goods and services.
Since 2005, Ireland emerged as a magnet for US internet/digital media investment, with industry leaders Yahoo, eBay, PayPal, Google, Amazon, Facebook and LinkedIn making it a significant hub for their European operations. Ireland’s evolution as a significant knowledge economy is evidenced in the sophistication and complexity of the investments into Ireland during 2010. US companies continued to invest in Ireland in 2010, representing approximately three quarters of all IDA announcements. US companies announced investments of approximately €350 million in research, development and innovation projects. Major expansion projects have been announced by US firms such as eBay and Hewlett Packard, United HealthCare and MSD, Hertz and Citi to name just a few. Meanwhile new investment was secured representing all of the key sectors, such as services in D&B, new media in EA Games, and Warner Chilcott in life sciences.
The key reasons for Ireland’s attractiveness as an export platform to the rest of the EU and international markets include:
• a 12.5% corporate tax rate for domestic and foreign firms alike
• the quality and flexibility of the English-speaking work force
• cooperative labour relations
• political stability with sustained pro-business Government policies
• a transparent judicial and taxation regime; and
• the pulling power of existing companies operating successfully in Ireland (a “clustering” effect).
Today, nearly 100,000 people are directly employed in over 600 US firms in Ireland accounting for 70% of all IDA supported employment. US companies have a $190 billion cumulative stock of investments in Irish based operations.
In 2010, US firms paid an estimated €3 billion to the Irish Exchequer and contributed a further €15 billion to the Irish economy in terms of payrolls, goods and services expenditure in their operations.
The US is Ireland’s top export destination with total bilateral trade (exports to + imports from the US) worth €23 billion for the last full year. US firms themselves export an estimated €93 billion of products and services from Ireland into world markets.
US firms in Ireland form a critical part of Ireland’s cutting edge, internationally traded goods and services economy in industries such as information & communications technology, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical technologies and financial services.
US COMPANIES CONTINUED INVESTING IN IRELAND IN 2010
Company | Location | Description |
| StreamServe | Galway | Establishing an inside care and customer service operation |
| PayPal | Dublin | Further recruitment as part of ongoing expansion of customer service operations |
| D&B | Dublin | New business operations centre |
| Hertz | Dublin | Next Generation Shared Services Centre in Dublin |
| Hewlett Packard | Dublin | Recruitment of technical support staff for customers |
| eBay | Dublin | Expansion of European Centre of Excellence |
| LinkedIn | Dublin | Opening a new international headquarters in Dublin |
| IBM Ireland | Dublin | Establishing a Smarter Cities Technology Centre |
| Citrix | Dublin | Expansion of EMEA Customer Technical Support Centre |
| Dell | Limerick | Expansion of support operations in both Dublin & Limerick |
| United Technologies Corporation | Cork | New energy and security research centre |
| GE Healthcare | Dublin | Investment in R&D with Several Irish Universities |
| MSD | Dublin | Establishing Hub for newly established Shared Business Service Centre |
| SAP Business Objects | Dublin | Additional Recruitment in telesales operation |
| Webroot | Dublin | New International Headquarters |
| EA Games | Galway | Opening a new European customer service and operations center |
| AOL | Dublin | New software engineering jobs at its development centre |
| MFG.com | Louth | New EMEA Operations Centre |
| LinkedIn | Dublin | Creation of new positions in finance management |
| Spencer Stuart | Dublin | Establishing a Global Technology and Knowledge Centre |
| Stream Global Services | Dublin | Expansion of existing operations |
| Analog Devices | Limerick | Investment in R&D |
| FCStone | Dublin | New European Headquarters |
| Merit Medical | Galway | Establishing Centre of Operations |
| Eli Lilly | Cork | Establishing a European Financial Services Centre |
| Genworth Financial | Shannon | New recruitment in operations divion |
| United Healthcare | Donegal | Expansion of claims handling operations |
| Riot Games Inc | Dublin | New Emea Headquarters |
| Lumension | Galway | Global R&D Centre expanded |
| Covidien | Dublin | Opening new European Service Centre |
| Kellogg | Dublin | New European Centre of Excellence |
| Google | Dublin | New Operations Centre |
| AOL | Dublin | Additional recruitment in software development |
| FiTek | Dublin | Establishing a new European HQ |
| Otterbox | Cork | New EMEA HQ |
| D&B | Dublin | Further recruitment to new HQ |
| Salesforce.com | Dublin | Expansion across a range of business areas |
| Hollister ULC | Galway | Major expansion in manufacturing capacities |
| Synchronoss | Galway | New R&D and Operations Centre |
| Global Indemnity PLC | Cavan | New IT Development Operations |
| Industrial Info Resources | Galway | New European Operations Centre |
| Accenture | Dublin | Opening a new analytics centre |
| Genband | Galway | New Business Service Centre |
| Kemp Technologies | Limerick | EMEA HQ |
| Rockwell Automation | Cork | Workforce Expansion |
| Aspects | Galway | Facilities in Customer support & shared services |
| Citi | Dublin & waterford | New Sservices and product development roles |
| HP | Galway | Increase in software r&D Capacity |
| Zeus | Donegal | Expansion of operations |
Source: IDA Ireland and the American Chamber Media Watch