Portugal

Internet country code

.pt

Internet hosts

346,078 (2004)

Internet users

3.6 million (2002)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 47, FM 172 (many are repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998)

Telephone system

general assessment: Portugal's telephone system has achieved a state-of-the-art network with broadband, high-speed capabilities and a main line telephone density of 53% domestic: integrated network of coaxial cables, open-wire, microwave radio relay, and domestic satellite earth stations international: country code - 351; 6 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to Azores; note - an earth station for Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region) is planned

Telephones - main lines in use

4,278,800 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular

9,341,400 (2003)

Television broadcast stations

62 (plus 166 repeaters) note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands (1995)

Agriculture - products

grain, potatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, poultry, beef, dairy products

Budget

revenues: $64.81 billion expenditures: $69.09 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)

Currency

euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

Currency code

EUR

Current account balance

$-7.592 billion (2003)

Debt - external

$250.7 billion (2003 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

35.6 (1994-95)

Economic aid - donor

ODA, $271 million (1995)

Economy - overview

Portugal has become a diversified and increasingly service-based economy since joining the European Community in 1986. Over the past decade, successive governments have privatized many state-controlled firms and liberalized key areas of the economy, including the financial and telecommunications sectors. The country qualified for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in 1998 and began circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU member economies. Economic growth has been above the EU average for much of the past decade, but fell back in 2001-03. GDP per capita stands at 70% of that of the leading EU economies. A poor educational system, in particular, has been an obstacle to greater productivity and growth. Portugal has been increasingly overshadowed by lower-cost producers in Central Europe and Asia as a target for foreign direct investment. The coalition government faces tough choices in its attempts to boost Portugal's economic competitiveness and to keep the budget deficit within the 3% EU ceiling.

Electricity - consumption

41.48 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports

3.479 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

3.743 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production

44.32 billion kWh (2001)

Exchange rates

euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999)

Exports

$31.13 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities

clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides

Exports - partners

Spain 22.7%, Germany 15.2%, France 12.9%, UK 10.5%, US 5.8%, Italy 4.8%, Belgium 4.6% (2003)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $181.8 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 5.8% industry: 30.7% services: 63.2% (2003)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $18,000 (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

-1.3% (2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 28.4% (1995 est.)

Imports

$43.73 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products

Imports - partners

Spain 29.1%, Germany 14.7%, France 9.9%, Italy 6.4%, UK 4.9%, Netherlands 4.6% (2003)

Industrial production growth rate

0.4% (2003 est.)

Industries

textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; wine; tourism

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

3.3% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

22.3% of GDP (2003)

Labor force

5.409 million (2003)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 10%, industry 30%, services 60% (1999 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

2.542 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports

2.553 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption

339,800 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

28,830 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports

357,300 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA

Public debt

59.8% of GDP (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold

$12.81 billion (2003)

Unemployment rate

6.4% (2003 est.)

Area

total: 92,391 sq km land: 91,951 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than Indiana

Climate

maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south

Coastline

1,793 km

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Ponta do Pico (Pico or Pico Alto) on Ilha do Pico in the Azores 2,351 m

Environment - current issues

soil erosion; air pollution caused by industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution, especially in coastal areas

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Environmental Modification

Geographic coordinates

39 30 N, 8 00 W

Geography - note

Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar

Irrigated land

6,320 sq km (1998 est.)

Land boundaries

total: 1,214 km border countries: Spain 1,214 km

Land use

arable land: 21.75% permanent crops: 7.81% other: 70.44% (2001)

Location

Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Natural hazards

Azores subject to severe earthquakes

Natural resources

fish, forests (cork), iron ore, copper, zinc, tin, tungsten, silver, gold, uranium, marble, clay, gypsum, salt, arable land, hydropower

Terrain

mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south

Administrative divisions

18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma); Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu

Capital

Lisbon

Constitution

25 April 1976; revised 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, 3 September 1997, 12 December 2001, and 24 July 2004

Country name

conventional long form: Portuguese Republic conventional short form: Portugal local long form: Republica Portuguesa local short form: Portugal

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Adrienne S. O'NEAL embassy: Avenida das Forcas Armadas, 1600-081 Lisbon mailing address: Apartado 4258, 1507 Lisboa Codex; PSC 83, APO AE 09726 telephone: [351] (21) 727-3300 FAX: [351] (21) 726-9109 consulate(s): Ponta Delgada (Azores)

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Pedro Manuel Dos Reis Alves CATARINO chancery: 2125 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-8610 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3726 consulate(s) general: Boston, New York, Newark (New Jersey), and San Francisco consulate(s): Los Angeles, New Bedford (Massachusetts), Providence (Rhode Island)

Executive branch

chief of state: President Jorge SAMPAIO (since 9 March 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Pedro SANTANA LOPES (since 17 July 2004); note - Prime Minister Jose Manuel DURAO BARROSO resigned 5 July 2004 to take over the Presidency of the European Commission; Prime Minister Pedro SANTANA LOPES and his government resigned 11 December 2004, but will stay on in a caretaker capacity until February 2005 elections cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 January 2001 (next to be held NA January 2006); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Jorge SAMPAIO reelected president; percent of vote - Jorge SAMPAIO (Socialist) 55.8%, Joaquim FERREIRA Do Amaral (Social Democrat) 34.5%, Antonio ABREU (Communist) 5.1%

Flag description

two vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) and red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on the dividing line

Government type

parliamentary democracy

Independence

1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 5 October 1910 (independent republic proclaimed)

International organization participation

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC

Judicial branch

Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura)

Legal system

civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Legislative branch

unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 17 March 2002 (next to be held 20 February 2005); note - President SAMPAIO called for early elections after dissolving Parliament on 10 December 2004 because he lacked confidence in the four-month center-right government election results: percent of vote by party - PSD 40.1%, PS 37.8%, PP 8.7%, PCP/PEV 6.9%, The Left Bloc 2.7%; seats by party - PSD 105, PS 96, PP 14, PCP/PEV 12, The Left Bloc 3

National holiday

Portugal Day, 10 June (1580); note - also called Camoes Day, the day that revered national poet Luis de Camoes (1524-80) died

Political parties and leaders

Green Ecologist Party or PEV [Heloisa APOLONIA]; Popular Party or PP [Paulo PORTAS]; Portuguese Communist Party or PCP [Jeronimo de SOUSA]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Jose SOCRATES Carvalho Pinto de Sousa]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pedro Miguel SANTANA LOPES]; The Left Bloc or BE [Franciso Anacleto LOUCA]

Political pressure groups and leaders

NA

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Background

Following its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil as a colony. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades, repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year, Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal is a founding member of NATO and entered the EC (now the EU) in 1986.

Military branches

Army, Navy (PON; including Marines), Air Force (FAP), Republican Guard (including Fiscal Guard)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$3,497.8 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.3% (2003)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 2,628,892 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 2,107,502 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - military age and obligation

18 years of age for voluntary military service; compulsory military service was ended in September 2004 (September 2004)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males: 72,821 (2004 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 16.7% (male 916,106; female 840,574) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 3,454,970; female 3,535,108) 65 years and over: 16.9% (male 735,407; female 1,041,980) (2004 est.)

Birth rate

10.9 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate

10.37 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Ethnic groups

homogeneous Mediterranean stock; citizens of black African descent who immigrated to mainland during decolonization number less than 100,000; since 1990 East Europeans have entered Portugal

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.5% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

less than 1,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

27,000 (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 5.13 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)

Languages

Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official - but locally used)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77.35 years male: 74.06 years female: 80.85 years (2004 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93.3% male: 95.5% female: 91.3% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 37.9 years male: 35.8 years female: 40 years (2004 est.)

Nationality

noun: Portuguese (singular and plural) adjective: Portuguese

Net migration rate

3.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Population

10,524,145 (July 2004 est.)

Population growth rate

0.41% (2004 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 94%, Protestant (1995)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.46 children born/woman (2004 est.)

Disputes - international

some Portuguese groups assert dormant claims to territories ceded to Spain around the town of Olivenza

Illicit drugs

gateway country for Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market (especially from Brazil); transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe; consumer of Southwest Asian heroin

Airports

66 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 42 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.)

Highways

total: 68,732 km paved: 59,110 km (including 1441 km of expressways) unpaved: 9,622 km (2000)

Merchant marine

total: 122 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 872,557 GRT/1,236,025 DWT by type: bulk 12, cargo 49, chemical tanker 19, container 8, liquefied gas 7, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 7, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea/passenger 5, vehicle carrier 2 foreign-owned: Australia 1, Belgium 1, Cyprus 1, Denmark 7, Germany 21, Greece 2, Guadeloupe 1, Iceland 1, Italy 16, Japan 1, Malta 1, Norway 7, Panama 1, Spain 18, Switzerland 7, Ukraine 1, United Kingdom 1 registered in other countries: 24 (2004 est.)

Pipelines

gas 1,099 km; oil 8 km; refined products 174 km (2004)

Ports and harbors

Aveiro, Funchal (Madeira Islands), Horta (Azores), Leixoes, Lisbon, Porto, Ponta Delgada (Azores), Praia da Vitoria (Azores), Setubal, Viana do Castelo

Railways

total: 2,850 km broad gauge: 2,576 km 1.668-m gauge (623 km electrified) narrow gauge: 274 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)

Waterways

210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2003)