DUBLIN, Aug 20: The number of immigrants coming into Ireland has dropped sharply, with arrivals from EU newcomer states falling by 37 per cent in the last year as the economy slows, official data showed on Wednesday.

With Ireland’s so-called Celtic Tiger economy stalling and the country threatened by recession, the overall number of immigrants dropped to 83,800 in the year to April compared to 109,500 in the previous year.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) said immigration from the mostly ex-communist states which joined the EU in 2004 and 2007 showed the greatest fall, dropping to 33,700 compared to 52,700 last year.

Irish emigration also increased marginally to 45,300 from 42,200 in the year to April 2007 with most going to other EU states. Of the 19,800 emigrating to the “rest of the world”, 11,300 were going to Australia and Oceania.

Ireland enjoyed a near decade long economic boom starting in the 1990s, helping turn the immigration tide after generations of young Irish people left to seek their fortune overseas.—AFP