A consolidated-by-nationality approach to Irish foreign exposure

Abstract

How exposed is Ireland to foreign shocks? Relying on residence-based measures of foreign holdings to answer this question can be challenging. These statistics are obscured by the vast presence of Special Purpose Entities in the country. Alternatively, I construct an estimate of the Irish consolidated-by-nationality foreign balance sheet for the period between 2011 and 2019 based on a novel methodology that builds on firm-level data. I find that Ireland's consolidated foreign balance sheet is on average 46.7% smaller relative to its residence-based analogue. I interpret this result as an indication that Ireland is significantly less exposed to foreign shocks than what is suggested by residence-based statistics.