Publication Schedule
Economic Overview - Dashboard
Economic Overview - Dashboard (online - opens in a new tab)
A PDF version of the dashboard and the associated data are available at this Economic Overview - Dashboard publication page.
Labour Market Insight - Dashboard
A local labour market insight dashboard has been launched by the Department for Communities which contains data sourced from the Labour Force Survey, Claimant Count, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Business Register and Employment Survey, and Inter Departmental Business Register. The dashboard can be accessed at this link.
Labour Market Insight - Dashboard
Economy & Labour Market - A summary of key statistics
This slide pack provides a high-level statistical summary of the Northern Ireland economy and labour market and should be considered in conjunction with the detailed supporting information and commentary that can be accessed via the various links and associated sources that have been highlighted. NI Economy & Labour Market - A summary of key statistics.
Latest Labour Market Report
The latest Labour Market Report can be accessed via the Labour Market Overview page.
At a glance
Labour Force Survey
- The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate (age 16 and over) for the period October-December 2024 was estimated at 1.6%.
- The seasonally adjusted employment rate (aged 16 to 64) for October-December 2024 was estimated at 72.1%.
- The seasonally adjusted economic inactivity rate (aged 16 to 64) for October-December 2024 was estimated at 26.6%.
- The total number of hours worked in October-December 2024 was 29.6 million hours.
Further information on the Labour Force Survey
Labour Force Survey - Dashboard
Claimant Count (experimental)
- NI claimant count (experimental) was 40,000, an increase of 1.1% from the previous month.
- In January 2025, 4.1% of the NI workforce was recorded on the claimant count.
Further information on Claimant Count
Redundancies
- 50 redundancies were confirmed in January 2025, taking the annual total to 1,850, which was approximately four-fifths of the figure for the previous year (2,380).
- There were 440 proposed redundancies in January 2025, taking the annual total to 3,270, which was around four-fifths of the figure for the previous year (4,000).
Further information on Redundancies
Quarterly Employment Survey
- The number of employee jobs in September 2024 was estimated 831,780.
Further information on the Quarterly Employment Survey
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings
- Median gross weekly earnings for full-time employees (“weekly earnings”) in April 2024 was £666, an increase of 4.3% from £639 in 2023. This is higher than the average annual increase over the last twenty years and follows an increase last year (7.0%) which was the second highest on record.
- In real terms (that is, adjusted for inflation) weekly earnings in NI increased by 1.2% over the year to April 2024. This increase follows two years of decreases in real earnings, with the largest annual decrease in real earnings on record reported in 2022 (3.7%). For the UK as a whole, real weekly earnings also increased (2.9%) over the year, with decreases in the previous two year.
Further information on the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings
Business Register and Employment Survey
- The total employment in Northern Ireland in September 2022 was 836,873. The largest proportion of working owners was in Construction (6,161 or 14% of total Construction employment).
- The total number of employee jobs in Northern Ireland in September 2022 was 805,848, an increase of 13,222 (1.7%) since September 2021.
Further information on the Business Register and Employment Survey
Inter Departmental Business Register
- The number of VAT and/or PAYE registered businesses operating in Northern Ireland in 2024 is estimated to have risen by 810 (1.0%) to 80,045. This marked the tenth consecutive year of increase following a period of decline from 2008 to 2014.
Further information on the Inter Departmental Business Register.
NI Composite Economic Index
- The NICEI indicates that economic output increased by 1.3% over the quarter to September 2024 and increased by 3.0% over the year.
Further information on the Northern Ireland Composite Economic Index
Index of Services
Further information on the Index of Services
Retail Sales Index
- NI Retail Sales Index output, a subset of the Index of Services, increased 2.7% over the quarter (July - September 2024); increased by 5.0% over the year; and increased by 2.0% over the most recent four quarters compared to the previous four quarters. Please note that the experimental Retail Sales Index is included in the NI IOS from Quarter 3 2023.
Further information on the Index of Services
Index of Production
- The NI IOP increased by 1.2% over the quarter (July - September 2024) and by 0.8% over the year.
Further information on the Index of Production
Northern Ireland Broad Economy Sales and Exports Statistics (BESES)
- In 2023, total sales by businesses in Northern Ireland (NI) were estimated to be worth £97.6 billion.
- Sales within NI amounted to £64.3 billion, accounting for 65.9% of total sales.
Further information on the BESES
Index of Construction
- In the third quarter of 2024, the total volume of construction output increased by 6.7%, increased by 14.0% over the year and increased by 5.8% on a rolling four quarters basis.