The economic sentiment indicator (ESI) slightly decreased in February in the Euro Area (EA), registering, in the last month, a decrease in confidence indicators in all business sectors, while consumer confidence indicator increased. The prices of raw-materials and oil presented monthly rates of change of 0.3% and 5.2%, respectively (-13.1% and 3.2% in January).

In Portugal, the year-on-year rate of change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 2.1% in February, 0.2 percentage points less than in the previous month. 

On the external side, the implicit prices of exports and imports of goods continued to record negative rates of change, -3.5% in exports and -6.5% in imports (-3.0% and -7.4%, respectively, in December 2023). Excluding petroleum products, there were decreases of 2.8% in exports and 4.7% in imports (-2.1% and -4.7%, respectively, in December).

The short-term indicators, available for January, reveal a nominal acceleration in services, less intense decreases in industry and a deceleration in construction. The economic climate indicator, which summarizes the balances of responses to questions relating to business surveys, decreased in February, after having increased between November and January. From the expenditure side, the economic activity indicator increased in year-on-year terms between September and January, less intensely in the last two months, after decreasing in August. The investment indicator increased, in year-on-year terms, in January, resuming the profile of positive rates of change that had been interrupted in December, and the private consumption indicator decelerated.

According to the provisional monthly Labour Force Survey, the unemployment rate (16 to 74 years old), seasonally adjusted, remained at 6.5% in January (6.6% in October and 7.0% in January 2023). The labour underutilization rate (16 to 74 years old) stood at 11.6%, the same value as the previous month (11.8% in October and 12.1% in January 2023). The employed population (16 to 74 years old), seasonally adjusted, increased by 2.0% in year-on-year terms and 0.7% compared with the previous month (year-on-year rate of change of 1.8% in December).