As markets become more globalized and economies become more entwined, it's impossible to ignore the importance of investing in international stocks. Mutual funds, index funds, and ETFs have all combined to make your international choices simpler, quicker, and in many cases, more efficient.

But for many of you, investing in a passive index fund just isn't enough, because you're interested in country-specific stocks. You want to invest in companies on the ground -- not in a basket of companies in a mutual fund. Maybe you want direct exposure to Chinese small caps, Spanish communications, or German banking -- and this is where you'll find it.

In a country-by-country rundown, we're taking a tour across the globe, finding out which foreign stocks are traded on major U.S. indexes. We hope it will get your engine going.

In today's article, we'll be taking a look at seven companies whose headquarters are based in Ireland.

Company

Industry

Market Cap (millions)

Recent Price

Accenture (NYSE: ACN)

Management services

$25,290

$39.73

Allied Irish Banks (NYSE: AIB)

Foreign regional bank

$1,060

$2.40

Covidien (NYSE: COV)

Medical supplies

$20,290

$40.48

Elan (NYSE: ELN)

Drug delivery

$2,920

$5.00

Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR)

Diversified machinery

$10,910

$33.90

Governor & Company of the Bank of Ireland (NYSE: IRE)

Foreign regional bank

$930

$3.75

Warner Chilcott (Nasdaq: WCRX)

Drug manufacturer

$5,810

$23.04

Note: Does not include stocks with a market cap below $100 million.

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