Provisional 2018 budget deficit 0.5% of GDP, below government estimate
Public debt stood at 0.5% last year, below the government's previous estimates, according to the National Statistics Institute.
Portugal’s public sector budget deficit last year was 0.5% of gross domestic product, lower than the 0.6% previously estimated by the government, the National Statistics Institute (INE) announced on Tuesday.
According to the first formal notification relating to the European Union’s excessive deficit procedure, which the INE has sent to the EU’s statistical arm, Eurostat, the deficit was €912.8 million, or 0.5% of GDP.
That compares with a 3.0% public sector budget deficit in 2017.
“According to these provisional results, the net borrowing of General Government (GG) in 2018 amounted to €912.8 million, corresponding to 0.5% of GDP (3.0% in 2017),” the INE said in a statement. “Gross debt of GG reduced from 124.8% of GDP in 2017 to 121.5% in 2018.”
