Head of State said that the fall in oil prices and the depreciation of the euro could lead to an upward revision of the growth rate to about 2% this year.

The president said on Monday that the growth rate of the Portuguese economy in 2015 may be 2% due to the fall in oil prices and the depreciation of the euro.

“In 2014, economic growth was 0.9%, and the forecast for 2015 is 1.5%. However, the recent drop in oil prices and the depreciation of the euro could lead to an upward revision of rate growth for 2015 to values ​​around 2%, “said Aníbal Cavaco Silva, in Paris, before the OECD Council. The President is now the first Portuguese head of state to carry out an official visit to Headquarters for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a body of which Portugal is a member, in Paris.

In a speech optimistic about the situation of the national economy, Cavaco Silva said that in 2015 the Portuguese Government’s forecast is that the country has a budget deficit below 3%, and if it does, “the country will exit the excessive deficit procedure. (…) A fiscal adjustment of this magnitude is an effort of great proportions. ”

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