User:TheDockterisin/sandbox2

Below is the current article for the Dublin economy on the Dublin Wikipedia page. I will be making additions and improvements to it. I will put my changes in BOLD and make them larger so it is easy to see where I have made additions. I have attempted to leave the work of others undisturbed, and will not remove any content that is currently on the page.

The Dublin region is the economic centre of Ireland, and was at the forefront of the country's economic expansion during the Celtic Tiger period. ''' The Celtic Tiger period of economic expansion came to a halt in 2007/08 as the economy of Dublin, and Ireland as a whole, entered its worst recession in the modern era.   Still, looking at the entire Irish economy, nearly forty percent of gross domestic product for the country is generated in the Dublin area alone. ''' In 2009, Dublin was listed as the fourth richest city in the world by purchasing power and 10th richest by personal income. According to Mercer's 2011 Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, Dublin is the 13th most expensive city in the European Union (down from 10th in 2010) and the 58th most expensive place to live in the world (down from 42nd in 2010). ''' This level of wealth accumulation has led to a belief that differences in economic success between regions of Ireland during the Celtic Tiger period were made worse by the large share of economic growth going to the Dublin area, while other parts of the country failed to keep pace.   Despite this success in wealth generation, the Dublin area is still considered a secondary market on the European and International stage.  As of 2005, approximately 800,000 people were employed in the Greater Dublin Area, of whom around 600,000 were employed in the services sector and 200,000 in the industrial sector.[needs update] As of the middle of 2017, the number of employed persons rose to 874,400, or almost a 10% increase over 2005 numbers.  The ease of finding a new job has in fact been cited as one of the main reasons for increased migration from other areas of the British Isles. Better salaries, greater opportunity for advancement, access to multinational firms not found in other parts of the isles, and more stable career paths have all been factors in Dublin's success as a destination for a better working environment. '''

A number of Dublin's traditional industries, such as food processing, textile manufacturing, brewing, and distilling have gradually declined, although Guinness has been brewed at the St. James's Gate Brewery since 1759. Economic improvements in the 1990s attracted a number of global pharmaceutical, information and communications technology companies to the city and Greater Dublin Area. Companies such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, eBay, PayPal, Yahoo!, Facebook, Twitter, Accenture and Pfizer now have European headquarters and/or operational bases in the city, with several located in enterprise clusters like the Digital Hub and Silicon Docks. This presence of these companies has driven economic expansion in the city and led to Dublin sometimes being referred to as the "Tech Capital of Europe".

Financial services have also become important to the city since the establishment of Dublin's International Financial Services Centre in 1987. More than 500 operations are approved to trade under the IFSC programme. The centre is host to half of the world's top 50 banks and to half of the top 20 insurance companies. Many international firms have established major headquarters in the city, such as Citibank. The Irish Stock Exchange (ISEQ), Internet Neutral Exchange (INEX) and Irish Enterprise Exchange (IEX) are also located in Dublin. Dublin has been positioned as one of the main cities vying to host Financial Services companies hoping to retain access to the Eurozone after Brexit. The Celtic Tiger also led to a temporary boom in construction, with large redevelopment projects in the Dublin Docklands and Spencer Dock. Completed projects include the Convention Centre, the 3Arena, and the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre. ''' This redevelopment in the Docklands has recently made the district a prime location for technology related companies. With the creation of a Special Development Zone for tech friendly business in the area, the Docklands have taken on the nickname "Silicon Docks".   There was also a large amount of construction left unfinished when the boom ended however. In 2008, when the national economy constricted, many residential units in Dublin (around ninety thousand) were still lacking services or were not even finished being built.   This downturn in construction also had a major impact on jobs. In 2007 there were approximately 380,000 workers employed in construction. By 2012 this number had fallen substantially to only around one third of previous levels, or about 130,000 remaining jobs. '''

In the second quarter of 2018, Dublin touched its lowest unemployment rate in a decade, when it fell down to 5.7% as reported by the Dublin Economic Monitor. ''' Along with low unemployment, 2018 has been a strong year for economic recovery after the recession. Property prices in the Dublin residential sector are at their highest rates since 2008, and nearly 100% above 2012 levels. Office vacancies are also at their lowest rate since the height of the Celtic Tiger period and Dublin firms have increased their employment numbers for six straight years. Besides these positive economic indicators, 2018 has seen a rise in overall sales, ecommerce, and tourism. '''