An Overview of the Economy
Portugal has had a stable economy since it became a member of
the EU in 1986. Whilst the country used to rely on agriculture to
maintain a secure income, it has in recent years followed the lead
of many other EU countries and focused more on its service
sector. Tourism and consumer goods now amount to around
64% of the country's overall GDP. Since such strong economic
growth, Portugal has been able to improve living standards, reduce
unemployment and raise average incomes.
| statistics |
|
| GDP (PPP) (IMF) (US$Billions) |
230.5 |
| GDP (PPP) (CIA) (US$Billions) |
230.5 |
| GDP Growth (IMF) (%) |
1.9% |
| GDP Growth (CIA) (%) |
1.9% |
| GDP Per Capita (PPP) (IMF) (US$) |
21,700 |
| GDP Per Capita (PPP) (CIA) (US$) |
21,700 |
| GDP by Sector |
Agriculture: 8.1%
Services: 66.5%
Industry: 25.4% |
| Inflation (%) |
2.4% |
| Population Below the Poverty Line (%) |
18% |
| Labour Force (Millions) |
5.62 |
| Labour Force by Occupation (%) |
Agriculture: 10%
Services: 60%
Industry: 30% |
| Unemployment (%) |
7.7% |
| Main Industries |
Textiles, wood and cork, chemicals, auto-parts
manufacturing,
paper, base metals, dairy products, wine and other foods,
tourism, porcelain and ceramics, glassware, technology and
telecommunications, ship construction and refurbishment. |
Source: CIA World Factbook
GDP
| economic indicators |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
| GDP (US$Billions) |
156.71 |
179.20 |
185.71 |
194.97 |
223.30 |
| GDP Annual Growth (%) |
-0.8% |
1.5% |
0.9% |
1.3% |
1.9% |
| GDP Per Capita (US$) |
15,018 |
17,060 |
17,587 |
18,418 |
21,019 |
| GDP Per Capita (PPP) (US$) |
18,739 |
19,331 |
19,956 |
20,818 |
21,700 |
| Inflation (%) |
3.3% |
2.5% |
2.1% |
3.0% |
2.4% |
| Unemployment (%) |
6.3% |
6.7% |
7.6% |
7.7% |
7.7% |
| Mobile Phone Users |
3,074,194 |
9,341,400 |
9,341,400 |
11,448,000 |
12,226,000 |
| Internet Users |
4,400,000 |
3,600,000 |
3,600,000 |
7,782,700 |
- |
Source: IMF, CIA World Factbook
Major Exports & Imports
Portugal's imports and exports mainly consist of machinery and
equipment. The country's main trading partners are mostly other EU
members such as Spain whose imports amount to 29% of Portugal's
total amount. Germany is also a leading trading partner with
Portugal for both imports and exports.
Major Exports 2007
Clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper
products, agricultural products, food, and oil products,
plastics and leather, machinery and tools, vehicles.
Major Imports 2007
Machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum,
textiles, agriculure, food, oil and wine products, computer
accessories, household goods, passenger cars.
| export partners 2007 |
% of total |
| Spain |
26.5% |
| Germany |
12.9% |
| France |
12% |
| UK |
6.7% |
| US |
6.1% |
| import partners 2007 |
% of total |
| Spain |
29% |
| Germany |
13.1% |
| France |
8.1% |
| Italy |
5.6% |
| Netherlands |
4.4% |
Source: CIA World Factbook
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