Manufacturing growth in Ireland has slowed to its lowest rate in two years.

Investec's Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 52.9, down from 54.3 in January. The drop was largely a result of new orders, which declined from 54 from 57.7 on the index, its weakest level since November 2013.

"The global headwinds may be starting to weigh on the manufacturing sector here," said Philip O'Sullivan, chief economist at Investec Ireland. 

"We suspect that at least a part of this relates to recent euro strengthening, although we should note that some respondents cited the US and UK as the main source of new export orders", he added. 

Despite the dip, staffing levels in the manufacturing sector have continued to rise for the 33rd consecutive month.

meanwhile, declining oil and commodity prices have had a knock-on effect on input costs, with the latest drop the strongest since November 2009.