Irish inflation fell on a month-on-month basis for the first time in almost a year in December after averaging 7.8% in 2022, data showed this week. McGrath's department forecast last September that inflation would average 7.1% in 2023.

"The good news is inflation does appear now to have peaked. We think it will slide down now quite quickly across the remainder of this year," McGrath told Sky News at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Andrew Heavens)