High Demand for Recruitment in Cork According to Bank of Irleand Cork Job Index

- Cork outperforming other key urban centres including Waterford, Limerick and Galway

The job surge in Cork continued at pace in November according to the latest findings of Bank of Ireland's Cork Job Index. The index indicates that 6,046 recruitment advertisements were placed in Cork's regional newspapers during the month of November. This is an 18% increase over October and is the highest number of job advertisements placed since August.

The findings of the Job index clearly show that demand for labour in Cork exceeds other key urban centres across the country, most notably Waterford, Galway and Limerick. Since the Cork Job Index commenced in June of this year, over 35,000 recruitment advertisements have been recorded. This is more than three times the number for Galway, which recorded the highest number of job advertisements after Cork.

The job surge in November was driven by demand for labour across all sectors of the economy with the exception of the construction sector which fell by 13%. All other sectors recorded strong increases particularly the retail (+44%) and professional (+35%) sectors which are two key drivers of the economy in Cork. The manufacturing sector (+12%) and the IT/Tech sector bucked the national trend with a strong demand for labour. There were also strong gains in the financial sector (+91%) while healthcare (+28%) and education (+11%) recovered strongly after falling back in October.

Commenting on the 'Cork Job Index', Kieran Coveney, Regional Business Manager, Bank of Ireland with responsibility for Cork said: "The Cork Job Index is a barometer for the well being of the economy in Cork. With strong demand for labour across all sectors of the economy evident in the Job Index, and over 1,257 business start-ups formed in Cork in the first eleven months of this year, the prospects for further economic growth in Cork in 2006 look strong. As in the other key urban centres, the leisure, professional and retail sectors account for the most number of jobs. The buoyancy evident in these sectors is also being felt by our business bankers and these sectors will continue to be key drivers of the economy in Cork in 2006".

Ends

12th December 2005

Anne Mathews
Media Relations Manager
Bank of Ireland Group
Tel: 01 6043836 / 087 2460358

Kieran Coveney
Regional Business Manager
Bank of Ireland Cork
Tel: 021 427 4322

Note to Editors:

About Bank of Ireland Business Banking

Bank of Ireland is the number one Bank for business in Ireland with dedicated business managers available through each of its 270 strong nationwide branch network. Bank of Ireland Business Banking now provides over 100 business loans per day to all types of businesses ranging from start-ups to high-growth firms.

The Bank of Ireland business offer encompasses the full range of day-to-day business banking services as well as specialist Treasury, Commercial Finance, Credit card, Life Assurance planning services and Venture Capital. Over 60,000 customers have registered for its "Business On Line" service.