September 22, 2023
In the Euro Area (EA), Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in volume recorded a year-on-year increase of 0.5% in the second quarter of 2023 (1.1% in the first quarter) and a quarter-on-quarter rate of change of 0.1% (same rate as in the previous quarter). In Portugal, GDP in volume presented a year-on-year rate of change of 2.3% in the second quarter of 2023 (2.5% in the previous quarter). Comparing with the previous quarter, there was a nil rate of change (growth of 1.6% in the first quarter).
The Portuguese industrial production price index registered a year-on-year rate of change of -5.2% in August (after attaining -6.6% in July), presenting a negative rate of change for the fifth consecutive month. The grouping of Energy continued to be decisive for the reduction of the total index, with rates of -24.7%, -25.6% and -18.6%, between June and August. Excluding the energy component, this index decreased by 0.6% in year on-year terms (0.1% in July). The index for consumer goods recorded a year-on-year growth rate of 5.6% (6.4% in the previous month), decelerating for the ninth consecutive month, after reaching in November the highest growth of the current series (16.2%).
The year-on-year rate of change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased to 3.7% in August 2023 (3.1% in July). The year-on-year rate of change of energy products index stood at -6.5% (-14.9% in the previous month) and the index for unprocessed food products decelerated to 6.4% (growth of 6.8% in July).
On the external side, the implicit prices of exports and imports of goods registered year-on-year rates of change of -4.2% and -9.1% in July, respectively (-5.2% and -9.4%, June).
The short-term indicators for economic activity from the perspective of production, available for July, point out, in year-on-year terms, to a slowdown in volume in construction and in nominal terms in services, and to less intense declines in industry. From an expenditure perspective, the economic activity indicator slowed down in June and July, recording a year-on-year rate of change close to zero in the last month. The private consumption indicator decelerated in July, while the Gross Fixed Capital Formation indicator accelerated. The economic climate indicator, which summarizes the balances of responses to questions relating to business surveys, decreased in July and August, after having stabilized in June.
In July, according to the provisional monthly Labour Force Survey, the unemployment rate (16 to 74 years old), seasonally adjusted was 6.3%, the same as in the previous month (6.5% in April and 6.0% in July 2022). The labour underutilization rate (16 to 74 years old) stood at 11.6%, 0.1 percentage points less than in the previous month (12.0% in April and 11.6% in July 2022).
Source: Statistics Portugal
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