In 2023, Portugal stood out among the 12 best-performing economies in the European Union with the highest economic growth. This means that, compared to its peers, Portugal’s economy did the best that year.
However, it’s important to note that while 2023 showed significant growth, it wasn’t the highest growth ever. In 2022, for instance, the growth rate was almost three times higher than in the last quarter of 2023. But considering the current economic situation, Portugal still outperformed other countries.
Another notable achievement is that Portugal managed to reduce its domestic public debt to less than 100% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the previous year.
The European Commissioner for the economy, Paolo Gentiloni, praised Portugal for this accomplishment in a tweet, calling it an “impressive achievement.”
Portugal’s Prime Minister, António Costa, also highlighted these positive developments, emphasizing the country’s highest growth rate in the EU, record-high employment, and reduced debt.
Recent data published by the Bank of Portugal reveals that Portugal’s public debt ratio now stands at 98.7%, the lowest since 2009. This reduction in debt has been significant, falling below both government forecasts and reaching levels projected for 2024 earlier than expected.
The Governor of the Bank of Portugal, Mário Centeno, attributes this reduction to the collective efforts of families, businesses, and the government.
The efforts to reduce debt are further highlighted by the significant tax revenues collected by the government, which exceeded spending by €4.3 billion despite increased expenditure.
While Portugal’s economic growth in the last quarter of 2023 was 2.2%, it was lower than the growth experienced in 2022. Nevertheless, Portugal outperformed many other countries in the EU, with Spain being the closest competitor but still trailing by two percentage points.
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