2012 recession was worse than previously thought – publico

                 

                         
                     

                 

 
                         

It was already known that 2012 had been a black year in the history of Portugal, but now it is perceived that was worse than previously thought.

                     

                         The INE updated Thursday the data for that year, and says that GDP fell by 4% in real terms (and 4.4% in nominal terms), ie, 0.7 percentage points higher than estimated up to here. The INE data, ranging up to 1996, had never recorded such a low value, and we must go back to 1975 to find a worse year than 2012. In the year of the “hot summer”, according to the Bank of Portugal, the recession reached 5.1%.

According to INE, the review disclosed now (after access to more data and greater detail) “originates mainly in the investment component.”

After the intervention of the troika creditors in June 2011, 2012 was the first full year of implementation of austerity measures under the aegis of the then Finance Minister Vitor Gaspar. This year, job creation fell 4.1%, the granting of credit and consumption have plummeted and the annual unemployment soared to 15.7%, affecting 860,000 people.