Portugal: Economic sentiment hits near one-year high in March
Economic sentiment came in at 100.8 in March, up from February’s 100.1. March’s result marked the best reading since April 2023. Consequently, the index remained above the long-term average of 100, pointing to a positive near-term outlook for the economy.
The headline print reflected stronger confidence in the retail sector, and improved consumer sentiment. Moreover, confidence rose to an eight-month high in the services sector. That said, sentiment in the industrial and construction sectors deteriorated.
Considering indicators that are not used to calculate the index, employment expectations weakened, while the economic uncertainty index fell in March.