Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

Therefore, as regards the point Professor McHale is raising - and he is not the only one to have raised it - about contract manufacturing, as I understand it, from mid-2013 to 2014 according to the national accounts, goods exports had increased by 18.4%. According to the external trade statistics, however, they had increased by 1%, the difference being contract manufacturing. It is not the only difference, but it was overwhelmingly contract manufacturing. Is it fair to say that the export figures, and therefore GDP, were massively bloated by the existence of contract manufacturing?