Portuguese government confirms sky-high deficit

The Portuguese budget deficit has reached a sky-high 6.83 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), the Lisbon government confirmed on Monday (23 May).

The announcement follows rumours that were circulating in the Portuguese press early on Monday morning, the day when the Governor of the Portuguese National Bank, Victor Constâncio, presented an independent report on the state of the country's finances to the Portuguese prime-minister, José Sócrates.

The report was prepared by an ...