Official Portal - Statistics Portugal
      
 

The private consumption indicator accelerated and the investment indicator recovered in March. The economic climate continued to improve
Monthly Economic Survey
The private consumption indicator accelerated and the investment indicator recovered in March. The economic climate continued to improve - April 2010
19 May 2010

Summary
Accordingly with the flash estimates compiled by the EUROSTAT, in the 1st quarter of 2010, the Euro Area (EA) and the European Union (EU27) GDP registered year-on-year change rates of 0.5% and 0.3% (-2.2%. and -2.3% in the previous quarter). In April, the economic sentiment and the consumer confidence indicators maintained the upward movements in the EA and in the EU27. In the same month, the raw materials prices recorded strong year-on-year growths, as well as the oil prices. In Portugal, accordingly with the flash estimate, the GDP recorded a year-on-year change rate of 1.7% in the 1st quarter of 2010, 2.8 p.p. higher than in the previous quarter, reflecting the positive contributions of both the domestic demand and the net external demand. In the 1st quarter, the economic activity indicator intensified the upward movement observed in the two previous quarters. The private consumption indicator increased significantly in the 1st quarter of 2010, led by the positive contribution of both components, durable and non-durable consumption, stronger in the first case. In the same quarter, the GFCF indicator recovered, mainly due to the positive contribution of the transport material component. Concerning the international trade of goods, in the 1st quarter of 2010 imports and exports recorded positive year-on-year nominal change rates for the first time since the 3rd quarter of 2008, with exports increasing 14.6% in the 1st quarter 2010 (-3.3% in the 4th quarter of 2009) while imports presented a change rate of 7.6% (-6.5% in the previous quarter). The economic climate indicator recovered in the last four quarters, although slightly in the 1st quarter 2010, and increased again in April. However, the increase observed in the 1st quarter of 2010 in the majority of the analysed indicators was partly due to the effect of the strong reduction of the economic activity recorded in the same quarter of 2009.
In the 1st quarter of 2010, the unemployment rate reached 10.6%, 1.7 p.p. more than in the same quarter of 2009 and 0.5 p.p. more than in the previous quarter, attaining a new maximum for the series started in 1998. Employment shifted from a -3.0% year-on-year change rate in the 4th quarter of 2009 to -1.8%.
In April, the year-on-year change rate of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 0.7%, 0.2 p.p. higher than the observed in the previous month. Excluding energy and unprocessed food products, the year-on-year change was -0.5% (-0.4% in March). In April the prices in the goods component accelerated 0.3 p.p. recording a growth rate of 0.8%, while the prices in the services component decelerated 0.1 p.p. to 0.6%. The differential between the EA Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) and the Portuguese HICP stabilized in April, at -0.8 p.p..

Press release
Download the document PDF (164 Kb)