Portugal

Investing in Portugal
Located by the coast, and washed by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the south, our country has from early times been considered as one of the entry gates to Europe. Transatlantic transactions have always taken Portugal and the Islands of Madeira and the Azores into consideration, whether for the unloading of merchandise or simply as a stoppage point.

Portuguese ports are quite crowded and thousands of items of merchandise originating from the Americas and Africa enter Europe through Portugal, benefiting from Portuguese economic openness and the strong ties which bind Portugal to the European Union. Portuguese ports thus provide an important vantage point for various multinationals.

Another fact to emphasise is the good meteorological conditions and Portuguese hospitality. The fact that Portugal is a sunny country makes people more positive and more willing to face life and its challenges. Days seem longer and profitability at work is greater. The people are communicative and proactive, and very receptive to state of the art technology, which makes Portugal a good country to test new products, given that the Portuguese take up new practices and technologies with ease.

There is good quality of life, including safe urban centres, green spaces, cultural activities, and areas for leisure and entertainment. Besides this, Portugal is one of the countries most frequently chosen to hold meetings and events due to its temperate climate, its organization and the quality of its hotel facilities.

Weather
Together with Ireland, mainland Portugal occupies the most westerly position in Europe and its weather and climate are much influenced by the Atlantic. Its southerly latitude gives it a Mediterranean type of climate, similar to that of the state of California, but one where the summer heat is tempered by the Atlantic influence.

Summer sunshine and temperature and winter mildness also increase southwards. The south-facing coast of the Algarve region is the sunniest, driest, and warmest part of the country, but the summer heat rarely reaches the unpleasant levels sometimes found in southeastern Spain.

Another favourable aspect of this region for tourists is the higher sea temperatures as compared with those on the west-facing coasts farther north, where seas are most likely to be rough.

Most parts of Portugal are sunny. Daily hours of sunshine average from four to five in winter and ten to eleven in summer in the north. These figures rise to six in winter and twelve in summer in the far south.

Economy
The Economy of Portugal is a high income market economy. The Global Competitiveness Report for 2005, published by the World Economic Forum, places Portugal’s competitiveness on the 22nd position, ahead of countries and territories like Spain, Ireland, France, Belgium, Hong Kong and Turkey. On the Technology index, Portugal was ranked 20th and on the Public Institutions index Portugal is the 15th best.

The major industries include: oil, petrochemistry, cement production, automotive and ship industries, electrical and electronics industries, machinery, pulp and paper industry, injection moulding, textile, footwear, leather, furniture, ceramics, beverages and food industry and cork (world’s largest producer). Manufacturing accounts for 33% of exports. Portugal is the world’s fifth-largest producer of tungsten, and the world’s eighth-largest producer of wine. Tourism has developed significantly and generates approximately 5% of the wealth produced in Portugal.

Most imports come from the European Union countries of Spain, Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. Most exports also go to other European Union member states.

The Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Quality-of-life Survey placed Portugal as the country with the 19th-best quality of life in the world for 2005, ahead of other economically and technologically advanced countries like France, Germany, the United Kingdom and South Korea.