Invest NI supported businesses show increases across all Key Performance Indicators, with External Sales surpassing £20bn for the first time.

Invest Northern Ireland published its Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) for supported businesses today, showing an increase across all metrics. Sales, External Sales and Exports [1] all increased by over 15 percent on 2021 figures, with employment continuing to grow in a post Covid environment.

The results, which are now official statistics published on gov.uk, measure the change in Employment, Sales, External Sales and Exports in businesses that have received Invest NI support[2], and represent an outcome-based indicator of the impact of the agency’s work.

The KPIs show that Invest NI supported businesses account for approximately 75 percent of NI exports and almost 80 percent of NI external sales (sales outside NI).

All sectors supported by Invest NI experienced sales growth in 2022, with sales in Advanced Engineering & Manufacturing increasing by £1bn and by £800m in Agri Food.  Life and Health Sciences and Digital and Creative both reported c20 percent increases in sales.

The Republic of Ireland continues to be the largest export market with the Americas (United States of America, Canada and South America) recording the largest growth in sales among Invest NI territories, at 16 percent on 2021 figures.

Employment within businesses supported by Invest NI also grew across all sectors, with Advanced Engineering & Manufacturing (+917), Life & Health Sciences (+871) and Digital & Creative (+605), all showing strong growth post the pandemic.

Commenting on the performance results, Interim CEO, Mel Chittock said: “These are a very strong set of performance indicators, particularly given the impact the EU Exit and Covid-19 has had on the business community right across Northern Ireland.

“This growth demonstrates the resilience and endeavours of NI businesses. It is also testament to the professionalism and commitment of Invest NI staff and to the help and support of our key partners and stakeholders. These results provide us with a very firm foundation from which we can continue to support the growth of the NI economy and deliver on the Department for the Economy’s 10X vision.”

[1] Sales: all good and services sold, including those sold within Northern Ireland.

External Sales: good and services sold outside of Northern Ireland.

Exports: good and services sold to countries outside of the United Kingdom.

[2] Invest NI KPI measures are based on a census of all Invest NI supported business. The KPIs are designed to measure the value of employment and economic activity generated by these businesses and to gain an understanding of the contribution Invest NI supported businesses make to the wider NI economy.