Portugal says economy growing faster than forecast

Record ID: 876775

  • Title: Portugal says economy growing faster than forecast
  • Date: 24th May 2017
  • Summary: LISBON, PORTUGAL (MAY 24, 2017) (REUTERS) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER MARIO CENTENO SEATED WITH REPORTERS DURING INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER, MARIO CENTENO, SAYING: "We consider that, for the economic activity, the government's message should be to insist that economic growth is accelerating and sustained by exports and investment and, therefore, this is something that could last for several quarters." CENTENO DURING INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER, MARIO CENTENO, SAYING: "Growth in the third quarter may be above 3%, of the second quarter I mean, may be above 3% given the economic acceleration we are seeing." REPORTER ASKING QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER, MARIO CENTENO, SAYING: "We are finally converging. The first quarter numbers are huge, we grow more than two thirds in terms of GDP growth than the European Union and that is a very significant value. We anticipate that this converging trend continues for the rest of 2017 and obviously everyone wishes it to continue in 2018." INTERVIEW IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER, MARIO CENTENO, SAYING: "The Bank of Portugal is preparing this bond swap and this also involves the Novo Banco administration and it's one of the key elements in the process, all the information I have indicates that all the foreseen timelines are being met." INTERVIEW IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL FINANCE MINISTER, MARIO CENTENO, SAYING: "What we consider more significant if this bond placement (in China) happens, like I said before, is investor diversification and the fact that Portugal might be the first sovereign country of the euro zone to issue bonds in Chinese currency and that shows our investors the importance the country and the government outs into diversifying sources of financing." END OF INTERVIEW
  • Embargoed: 7th June 2017 16:47
  • Keywords: financial crisis Mario Centeno economy Portugal
  • Location: LISBON, PORTUGAL
  • City: LISBON, PORTUGAL
  • Country: Portugal
  • Topics: Budget/Taxation/Revenue,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016I79AH3
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Portugal's economy is outpacing the official growth forecast, fuelled by exports and investment, and is set to reach more than 3 percent in the second quarter and more than 2 percent for the whole of 2017, the finance minister said on Wednesday (May 24).
    Speaking to Reuters in an interview, Mario Centeno said he was confident about Portugal's improving economic outlook after years in the doldrums during the euro zone debt crisis, when the country was forced to seek a bailout. Lisbon's official growth forecast for 2017 is 1.8 percent.
    He said year-on-year growth in the second quarter was likely to be "above 3 percent, given the acceleration we are seeing". In the first quarter the economy grew 2.8 percent compared with a year earlier, its strongest in a decade.
    In order to take advantage of growing demand for Portugal's debt, Centeno said the country is planning soon to issue short-term bonds in yuan, which could mark the first debt issue in China's currency by a euro member.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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