António Costa was speaking to reporters at the Pontinha barracks in Odivelas municipality, following the publication of the latest figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE), according to which the Portuguese economy grew by 2.1 percent on year in the first quarter and 0.4 percent against the previous quarter.
According to the Prime Minister, these figures “are in line with the forecast” of the Government, as this year it expected, “a slower pace of growth of the Portuguese economy, in line with the evolution of the European economy.”
“But the Government is expecting with the quarter that has already begun that the economy will see a better result,” he said.
According to the prime minister, there are two indicators that lead the minority socialist government to remain optimistic about the rest of the year.
First, according to the PM, “there is the fact that in the first quarter investment has grown significantly, which is important.”
“Alongside this, we can see by the evolution of social security contributions that the rate of reduction of unemployment and job creation remains very
fast,” he said.
According to a flash estimate released on Tuesday by the National Statistics Institute (INE), Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by 2.1 percent in volume in the first quarter of 2018 (2.4 percent in the previous quarter) and compared to the fourth quarter of 2017, GDP increased by 0.4 percent in real terms (0.7 percent in the previous quarter).