By John Considine
In 2015 the Irish imported over €400m in footwear and 22% of this is footwear for sporting activity. There were just under five million pairs of sporting footwear products imported and over two-thirds of these were rubber soled items classified for tennis/gym use. The official statistics are skimpy on the details about the country of origin of Irish footwear imports. However, the statistics do tell us where we import a massive 75% of "Shoes for Tennis/Gym". Any ideas?
It is possible to work out the average price for the sport footwear. These are presented in the bar chart below. Shoes for Tennis/Gym are imported for approximate €18 a pair. Those being imported from EU are more expensive than those originating from outside the EU. The import prices for EU products are also more expensive in the other two categories. Again, data limitation prevent further disaggregation.
It is possible to work out the average price for the sport footwear. These are presented in the bar chart below. Shoes for Tennis/Gym are imported for approximate €18 a pair. Those being imported from EU are more expensive than those originating from outside the EU. The import prices for EU products are also more expensive in the other two categories. Again, data limitation prevent further disaggregation.
One might be inclined to believe that the vast majority of sport footwear being imported into countries like Ireland comes from eastern Asia. A recently launched introductory textbook in economics begins a chapter with a section titled "Are companies like Nike harming workers in Vietnam?". The authors point out that "globalisation in general has been an enormous force for good in Vietnam". The Irish data shows that very few of the Irish sports footwear imports arrive direct from Vietnam (although where the footwear is actually manufactured might tell a different story). The little data we have on Irish imports of Shoes for Tennis/Gym shows that the vast majority come from the neighbouring island of Great Britain - 75% to be exact.
There is more detailed data on all footwear imports. The pie chart below shows that the vast majority footwear Irish imports come from Great Britain or China (note: this data is for all footwear). Vietnam is included in Other Non-EU and accounts for 7% of the total. One wonders if Brexit will make a difference.
There is more detailed data on all footwear imports. The pie chart below shows that the vast majority footwear Irish imports come from Great Britain or China (note: this data is for all footwear). Vietnam is included in Other Non-EU and accounts for 7% of the total. One wonders if Brexit will make a difference.
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