Ireland / unemployment rate would be 20% without emigration says IMF

The IMF (International Monetary Fund) in its latest quarterly review of Ireland’s economy and prospects, says that “had all employees who lost their jobs since the outset of the crisis remained in the labour force,” instead of choosing emigration, the unemployment rate would stand at around 20%.

The Fund seems to have little confidence in the sustainability of Irish growth without an easing of the debt burden by Europe.

The report says that net exports are “still the sole engine of growth” and unsaid is likely the knowledge that most of the services growth in recent years is not real but reflects diverted revenues from other countries as part of the tax strategies of companies such as Google, Microsoft and Facebook coupled with Apple in respect of business service revenues, which are treated as exports.

Choosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor from

via Irish Economy: IMF says Ireland’s unemployment rate would be 20% without emigration.