| Country summary | |
|---|---|
|
Capital |
Lisbon |
|
Borders |
Spain 1,214 km |
|
Government type |
republic; parliamentary democracy |
|
Population |
10,707,924 (July 2010 est.)[1] |
|
Population growth |
0.275% (2010 est.)[1] |
|
Life expectancy |
78.21 years[1] |
|
Unemployment |
9.5% (2009 est.)[1] |
|
62[2] | |
|
35[3] | |
|
48[4] | |
Following its heyday as a global maritime power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence of its wealthiest colony of Brazil in 1822. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades, repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year, Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal is a founding member of NATO and entered the EC (now the EU) in 1986.[1]
Economical characteristics[]
- Currency: Euro (ISO code: EUR)
- Central bank discount rate: 3% (31 December 2008)[1]
- Commercial banks lending rate: 8.35% (31 December 2008)[1]
- is part of the Eurozone
Statistics[]
| Statistic / Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP (million USD)[5] | 121 662 | 112 650 | 115 712 | 127 455 | 156 413 | 178 952 | 185 454 | 195 015 | 223 337 | 243 497 |
| Govt. debt (% of GDP)[6] | 60.581 | 60.248 | 60.978 | 65.245 | 67.166 | 70.836 | 74.452 | 73.234 | 71.134 | 76.018 |
| Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[7] | 34.624 | 34.925 | 34.473 | 35.532 | 36.960 | 39.538 | 37.887 | 38.458 | 39.109 | 39.213 |
| Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[8] | 38.802 | 38.735 | 39.627 | 40.082 | 41.195 | 42.125 | 43.284 | 42.181 | 41.605 | 42.919 |
| Debt to revenue (years) | 1.750 | 1.725 | 1.769 | 1.836 | 1.817 | 1.792 | 1.965 | 1.904 | 1.819 | 1.939 |
References[]
Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 CIA - The World Facebook. "Portugal", from The World Facebook. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Heritage Foundation. "Portugal", Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Transparency International. "Portugal", Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Doing Business. "Portugal", Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Portugal: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Portugal: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Portugal: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Portugal: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
External links[]
- Portugal on Wikipedia
- Central bank of Portugal
- Studies from the Library of Congress (1986-1998)
- BBC country profile
- Debt Worries Shift to Portugal, Spurred by Rising Bond Rates by Landon Thomas Jr., April 2010
- Portugal legalizes drugs. Crime/Usage falls. (video), BBC, July 2009
- Drugs in Portugal: Did Decriminalization Work? by Maia Szalavitz, April 2009
- Drug Decriminalization in Portugal (video), CATO Policy Forum, April 2009
- Drug Decriminalization in Portugal (pdf) Glenn Greenwald, 2009
- Drug policy of Portugal on Wikipedia