Luís Montenegro spoke at the opening session of the “Capital Markets Day” conference at Culturgest in Lisbon, beginning his address in English.
Addressing an audience of many international investors, the leader of the executive proposed that Portugal has a “situation of practically full employment, with historically low unemployment rates around 6%.”
“We are projected to have a budget surplus by the end of this year, in 2025, and also in 2026, despite all fiscal challenges and difficulties,” he stated. He estimated the surplus at 0.1% of GDP in 2026, acknowledging doubts surrounding this indicator.
“There are those who have slightly more modest expectations than those presented by the Government, and the economy is not an exact science, as the budget perspective is always based on assumptions,” he admitted.
However, according to Luís Montenegro, “without any arrogance, with feet firmly planted, knowing the path being walked,” he expressed that his Government has exceeded the objectives.
“I present this credit as a testament that, in 2026, despite all the warnings and differing opinions, we will once again surprise and surpass these resistances in terms of optimism,” he concluded.
Furthermore, according to the Prime Minister, in terms of public debt, Portugal has achieved an “absolutely remarkable” track record.
“We are convinced that it will be lower than 88% of our GDP by the end of 2026, which reveals a trajectory, an effort truly remarkable that, forgive me, our foreign guests, makes many who doubted our decisions blush with admiration,” he commented.
After these praises regarding the trajectory of the Portuguese economy, the Prime Minister identified security as one of the main challenges facing the country. Although without specifying other countries, he remarked that some have downplayed this aspect and are now being penalized for it.
“Security is also a factor of economic competitiveness, being fundamentally an element for the quality of life of any citizen. But it is also an economic asset, and that is why this Government has prioritized a situation that is never guaranteed,” he justified.
Luís Montenegro then stated that, “as a courtesy,” he would not mention other European countries in his speech.
“There are countries in Europe that not long ago had a performance in terms of security index very similar to what we have in Portugal, and today they are very far off – and for the worse. The insecurity phenomena of certain crime segments were underestimated, and having been underestimated in the past, they now face increased difficulty being addressed today. We do not want to underestimate the signals we have of concern to ensure we continue to be one of the safest countries in the world,” he added.
