Ireland reported the highest quarterly GDP growth in the EU in Q1 2025

Ireland reported GDP growth of 9.7% in the first quarter of 2025, compared to the previous quarter, the biggest increase in the European Union, according to Eurostat data.

Ireland significantly outperformed other EU member states in terms of GDP growth in the quarter, with Malta (+2.1%), Cyprus (+1.3%), Czechia (+0.8%) and Poland (+0.7%) among the other countries to see quarter-on-quarter growth.

Luxembourg (-1.0%), Slovenia (-0.8%), Denmark (-0.5%) and Portugal (-0.5%) saw their GDP decline in the first quarter of this year, the data showed.

GDP performance

In the first quarter, seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 0.6% in both the euro area and the EU, compared to the last quarter of 2024. On a year-on-year basis, however, GDP grew by 1.5% in the euro area and 1.6% in the EU.

In terms of the main GDP components, household consumption rose modestly (+0.2% in both the EU and euro area) in the first quarter, while government spending was flat (in the euro area) or slightly negative (in the EU).

Gross fixed capital formation jumped 1.8% in both the EU and the euro area, while both exports and imports increased (+1.9% and +1.4% respectively in the euro area).

Employment levels

Elsewhere, the number of employed persons increased by 0.2% in the euro area, and remained stable in the EU, compared to the previous quarter. Year-on-year, employment increased by 0.7% in the euro area and 0.4% in the EU.

Croatia (+1.0%) and Spain (+0.8%) reported the strongest employment gains in the quarter, while Romania (-2.1%) and Estonia (-0.8%) experienced the largest declines.

Eurostat estimates that in the first quarter of 2025, 219.8 million people were employed in the EU, of which 171.6 million were in the euro area. Read more here.

GDP of EU Member States, Q1 2025 (in millions of euro)

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