Finance Minister finally admits Irish concern at latest market turmoil

Noonan watching developments in America with sense of fear

By: CATHAL DERVAN | Published Tuesday, August 9, 2011, 6:46 AM | Updated Tuesday, August 9, 2011, 6:46 AM

Ireland’s Finance Minister Michael Noonan has finally admitted to Government fears over the latest economic turmoil in America.

As stock markets across the world take a battering, Noonan has expressed ‘concern’ at the potential damage to Ireland’s recovery from the downturn.

As share values fell sharply across the globe, Irish experts now fear the recent economic growth will dissipate and put renewed pressure on government to meet the terms of the EU-IMF bailout.

Minister for Finance Noonan has claimed it is ‘too soon’ to know how Ireland will be affected by developments in America after the downgrading of the US credit rating but he did admit to fresh concerns.

“We’d be very concerned about a further dip in the US, because the US, I believe, will still lead a world recovery supported by emerging nations like China and India. That’s worrying,” said Noonan.

“It’s too soon to say what the consequences of what’s happening in America will be, because there are some positive signs in the American economy as well, and a lot of commentators would disagree that there’s a double dip recession in prospect.”

With a harsh December budget already in prospect, Irish tax-payers will monitor development on the NYSE closely in the coming days as Noonan looks to slash $5billion off government spending under the terms of the bail-out.

“We are monitoring events in Europe and the US very closely but there’s nothing directly that we can do at the moment,” added Minister Noonan.

“From our point of view, we’re reasonably well-positioned since the renegotiation downward of the interest rate and the other bailout changes.

“But we’re always a small player in these events and we can be dragged back into difficulty by external forces.”