Conceptual ambiguities and statistical weaknesses hamper the assessment of external competitiveness. The term competitiveness, while applied extensively, is often imprecisely defined, which can result in analytical errors and mistaken policy advice. Furthermore, aggregate statistical measures of...

Portugal’s economy is in deep recession, and the crisis has opened up a large output gap, with severe consequences for employment and government revenue. While the focus is on the medium- and long-term, this analysis also offers insights on how deep the output gap is. It also highlights...

This paper discusses Portugal’s Eighth and Ninth Reviews Under the Extended Arrangement and Request for Waivers of Applicability of end-September Performance Criteria (PC). Program implementation has remained broadly on track, in spite of a political crisis and significant legal...

In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.

This Eleventh Review Under the Extended Arrangement and Request for Extension of the Arrangement focuses on Portugal’s macroeconomic framework and fiscal policy. Sovereign bond yields have declined sharply, buoyed by the improved economic outlook and increased investor appetite for higher...

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Portugal’s practices meet most of the principles of the revised Fiscal Transparency Code at good or advanced levels. A number of areas still present practices at a basic level, but in most of these cases this reflects reforms that have recently been launched and have not...