MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The number of overseas visitors increased by 4.2 percent mostly due to the tourists from North America and Europe, the Irish thejournal.ie news website reported, citing the country's Central Statistics Office (CSO) data.
Meanwhile, the number of UK tourists has decreased by 6.4 percent in 2017 amid devaluation of the UK currency triggered by the Brexit referendum.
In 2016, more than 9.5 million foreigners visited Ireland, according to the CSO figures.
The majority of UK citizens backed the decision to withdraw from the European Union at the referendum held in 2016. Following the move, the uncertainty surrounding the Brexit talks and the prospects of the UK economy resulted in depreciation of a pound and a decision of certain financial institutions to relocate their offices from the United Kingdom.
