Portugal's economy explained: GDP data, market trends, business developments, inflation, real estate, and economic policy. Analysis of how economic trends affect daily life and expat finances.
📋 In This Edition * Market Wrap: Lisbon Ends the Week Lower as Europe Turns Red * Movers: EDP, Sonae and NOS Weigh; Cork and Food Retail Buck the Trend * Business & Tech Focus: DAZN
Diesel is forecast to fall about 12 cents a litre next week and petrol 12.5 cents, one of the sharpest drops in memory, taking simple diesel to roughly €1.931 and 95-octane petrol to €1.855, according to ACP estimates as global oil prices cool.
The government says about 94% of people on benefits will get the same or more once Portugal merges 13 social payments into the new Prestação Social Única. Unions dispute the figure, citing claimants set to lose up to €188 a month. Practical effects begin on 31 December.
A government bill would force Portuguese employers to reveal pay to job candidates and staff from 2027, transposing an EU directive Portugal was supposed to adopt by June.
Investors poured €508 million into Portuguese hotels in the first half of 2026, up 54% on a year earlier and already more than the whole of 2025. Almost all of it came from abroad.
vendinGO, a vending company from the Bairrada, has bought a paper-cup factory (Madil) and a coffee roaster (Caffier) for about €1.8 million, aiming to control its supply chain 'from the coffee to the cup' and lift turnover to €15 million by year-end while adding 20 qualified jobs.
National vehicle production fell about 1% to roughly 176,000 units in the first half — the weakest H1 since 2022 — after Autoeuropa's June output dropped around 25%. The Palmela plant is halting lines for a €300 million retooling for electric vehicles; nearly all output is exported.
