Irish multinationals based abroad saw turnover in excess of €168bn in 2015.

New figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show US and UK affiliates accounting for almost 61% of this.

There were nearly 774,000 people employed in Irish multinationals abroad, 35% of whom were in the US and UK.

Comparing 2015 to the previous year, the turnover in Irish affiliates in the UK increased by 19.8% while employment was up by 9.1%.

Source: CSO

Irish firms in the US saw a drop in employment by nearly 4,600 - but turnover actually increased by 6.2%.

There was also an increase in both employment and turnover in Irish multinationals in countries other than the US and the UK.

Irish firms based in China, Germany, Mexico and France saw employment of over 20,000.

In terms of turnover, affiliates in Germany, Netherlands and France all generated over €4bn.

The remaining countries, largely in Africa and Asia, produced over €36bn of total turnover.

Source: CSO

In terms of sectors, services - including distribution - was the dominant sector for employment in Irish affiliates in 2015.

This was followed by manufacturing and construction.

An enterprise is deemed to be Irish owned if over 50% of its controlling interest is in Ireland.