Irish Economy: The Central Bank said today in its first Quarterly Bulletin of the year, that the economy appears to be close to the trough of the downturn in output terms, although some weakness will persist into the first half of this year, and there are likely to be further employment losses. Recovery, when it emerges, is likely to be gradual and modest. The Bank said although data for the final quarter of 2009 is not yet available, aggregate income in the economy is estimated to have declined by around 11 per cent last year in GNP terms, following a decline of just under 3 per cent in 2008. Carryover effects, and the likelihood that weakness in economic activity may continue into the first half of this year suggests that a further annual average contraction of around 2 per cent in GNP (gross national product - - this metric adjusts for the profits of the dominant multinational sector) and 1 per cent in GDP (gross domestic product) is in prospect for 2010 as a whole.