Galway Bay fm newsroom - There's been an increase of 17 percent in the number of start-ups in Galway during the first three months of this year.
That's according to new figures from CRIFVision-Net.
The biggest growth in urban start-ups was recorded in Galway at 17 percent, followed by Cork at 16 percent, Dublin at 9 percent, and Limerick at 8 percent.
Outside the large population centres, the biggest increase in new companies was recorded in counties Sligo, Carlow and Westmeath.
The data shows that nationally, a total of 6,353 new company start-ups were registered in Q1 2021, marking an 8% increase compared to the same time last year.
The quarterly figures also reveal an almost 100 percent increase in the fields of retail trade & wholesale, as well as manufacturing.
Analysts suggest the continued Covid-19 public health restrictions and resulting job losses, may have compelled more people to start their own businesses.
Other strong performing sectors include motoring, which has grown by 41 percent year-on-year, and transport, storage & communications, which increased by 33 percent.
Meanwhile, there were notable decreases in start-ups in the fields of hospitality, which fell by 13 percent, and construction, which dropped 8 percent, when compared to the first three months of 2020.
CRIFVision-Net says despite continued economic adversity across many sectors, the fundamentals of the economy remain strong and business owners appear confident of strong growth this year.
