2020.08.1416:01:00UTC+00Portugal Q2 GDP Decline Revised To 16.3%

Portugal's economy contracted slightly less than initially estimated, but the rate of decline remained sharp, amid the severe hit from the coronavirus pandemic, latest figures from Statistics Portugal showed on Friday. Gross domestic product fell 16.3 percent year-on-year, which was initially estimated at 16.5 percent. In the first quarter, the economy shrank 2.3 percent. Two consecutive quarters of economic contraction equals to a technical recession. Domestic demand made a negative contribution of 11.9 percentage points, which was far worse than the 1.2 percentage points in the previous quarter. This was largely due to the sharp contraction in private consumption and investment due to the containment measures implemented to battle the Covid-19.

Negative contribution of external demand worsened to 4.4 percentage points as exports declined more than imports, due largely to the near interruption of non-residents tourism, the statistical office said. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP fell 13.9 percent after a 3.8 percent drop in the previous quarter. The quarterly decline was initially estimated as 14.1 percent.