Users should note that these Institutional Sector Accounts incorporate revisions made to the Annual National Accounts (ANA) 2025 and Quarterly National Accounts (QNA) which were published on 02 July 2026. These revisions have increased the level of household saving from 2020. Further details of these changes and their effects on household saving are provided in the Households chapter and Background Notes of this release.
Households added almost €1 to their wealth for every €5 of disposable income in January, February, and March (Q1) 2026.
The seasonally adjusted household saving rate of 19.1% in Q1 2026 was similar to the 18.7% rate in Q4 2025 and the 18.5% average since the start of 2023.
The government surplus was provisionally estimated to be €0.8bn in Q1 2026, a decrease from the surplus of almost €9bn in Q4 2025.
There has been a government surplus in 14 of the 18 quarters since Q4 2021 whereas there was a deficit in 14 of the 18 previous quarters going back to Q2 2017.
For the economy as a whole, unadjusted Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 13% lower than Q1 2025, in part due to lower value added in Industry. However, Gross National Income (GNI) increased by 15% from Q1 2025.
The current account balance was positive in Q1 2026, standing at almost €18bn, which was higher than the Q1 2025 figure of €4bn.
The increase in GNI and the higher current account balance was in part due to the lower amounts which flowed out of the domestic economy to corporations' owners abroad as profits and dividends.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (25 August 2026) published the Institutional Sector Accounts Non-Financial for Quarter 1 (Q1) 2026.
Commenting on the release, Mark Manto, Statistician in the National Accounts Analysis & Globalisation Division of the CSO, said:
"The seasonally adjusted saving rate of households, which is the proportion of income that is left over after current consumption, was 19.1% in January, February, and March (Q1) 2026. This was similar to both the 18.7% rate in Q4 2025, and the 18.5% average since the start of 2023. When adjusted for seasonal patterns, both consumer spending and disposal household incomes increased in Q1 2026 compared with Q4 2025, with a greater rise in income resulting in the increased saving rate.
The economic indicators for the wider economy were mixed. While Gross Domestic Product (GDP) decreased by 13%, Gross National Income (GNI) was up 15% in current prices in Q1 2026 from Q1 2025. This increase in GNI was largely due to changes in the amount of value added which flowed out of the country to owners abroad as profits and dividends.
The government surplus was provisionally estimated to be €0.8bn in Q1 2026. There has been a government surplus in 14 of the 18 quarters since Q4 2021 whereas there was a deficit in 14 of the 18 previous quarters going back to Q2 2017."