Annual Irish residential property price growth hit a fresh seven-year high of 15.3% in February to edge closer to passing the credit-fuelled peak of 2007 that was ended by a massive property crash, data showed on Thursday.

The price rises were broadly shared across the country with transaction prices in Dublin rising by 13.5% and those outside the capital up 16.8%, the Central Statistics Office said. Overall, prices are 2.5% below the record levels in 2007.

Ireland has fallen well short of meeting housing demand each year since then. Supply is picking up after COVID-19 lockdowns but the country's central bank warned last week that higher costs and labour shortages could leave the government short on its delivery targets.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)