The covid-19 lockdown has led to the economy officially entering recession.
GDP fell by a record 6% in the second quarter of the year, according to the CSO.
April, May and June also saw consumer spending drop by a fifth.
The construction industry's taken a hit of 38% - the transport, hotel and restaurant sector's contracted by 30%.
Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe says the country is already starting to recover:
“Looking forward, a recovery in GDP clearly occurred in the third quarter. Retail sales in July were almost 5 per cent above the pre-pandemic level with a range of ultra-high frequency indicators, which will be published by the Department later today, pointing to a continuation of this trend in August, albeit at a more modest rate of growth. Similarly, in the labour market, the numbers of persons on the pandemic unemployment payment has fallen by over 60 per cent from a peak of 600,000 in early May, with large declines seen throughout July and early August. My Department will be producing a new set of forecasts in the coming weeks in the run-up to the Budget."
The CSO has also provided an update on the impact of the pandemic's impact on the jobs market.
783 thousand people are now receiving either jobseekers' benefit or the pandemic unemployment payment - or benefitting from the temporary wage subsidy sceheme.
