Investor Presentaiton

Irish Economic Environment - Overview Employment has surged... while mortgage interest rates continue to be low... Irish Employment Mortgage Interest Rates Million 2.4 12.0 1.9 1.9 9.6 10.0 2.0 1.7 7.6 1.6 8.0 7.2 6.8 7.2 7.1 1.3 1.2 1.2- 1.1 6.0 0.8 4.0 T T 5.8 5.3 4.9 4.7 3.7 3.5 3.7 0.4 0.0 1985 1990 1995 2.0 0.0 2000 2004 2005 T T 1995 1997 Source: Irish Central Statistics Office 1993 1999 2001 Source: BOI Global Markets Economic Research Unit T ך 2003 2005 Employment in the aggregate continues to grow strongly with 2 million employed by the end of Q1 2006. Over the 12 months the total number employed increased by 90,000. The unemployment rate in Q1 2006 was 4.4% (CSO-Quarterly National Household Survey), up from 4.2% a year earlier. Economies are in full employment when unemployment is under 6% - OECD. 'Average mortgage rates are now between 4.0% and 5.0% following one percentage point of rate increases by the ECB. 41 Bank of Ireland Group

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