Pierre Moscovici may well have been right, Portugal’s economic performance is accelerating hard, driven by the service sector and by private consumption of food and non-food items, which has recorded the biggest increase since May 2001, alongside a pleasing increase in exports.
During a flying visit on July 18th, Moscovici predicted that Portugal’s deficit will be 1.8% this year and that economic growth "will probably be above 2.5%."
Moscovici said that "Portugal's progress is very impressive" and today’s National Institute of Statistics shows economic activity increasing at the highest rate for 16 years with the forecasts of several institutions revised upwards.
The economic activity indicator grew 3% in May, when compared to the same period last year. This is the sharpest increase since May 2001.
Contributing to this development have been industry and the service sectors, mainly tourism, both of which have shown improved performance.
Pierre Moscovici said he was "impressed" by the progress made by Portugal since his February visit and the government will patch onto the statistical good news while avoiding answering questions about the ever-increasing national debt. .
As for corporates, gross fixed capital formation, the wealth created by Portuguese companies, continued to rise, "prolonging the expressive upward trajectory begun in June 2016."
According to the Institute, this continuation of the marked rise is due in part to the construction sector, which is the one that made the most significant contribution.
The indicator of confidence in construction and public works, in fact, is at its highest since September 2002 and has been growing since December 2012.
