In 2013, in the midst of the financial crisis, alarm bells sounded when it was discovered that some public companies - such as Carris, Metro de Lisboa, Refer and Metro do Porto - had contracted ‘swaps’ with Santander Totta.

This complex financial instrument, a form of bizarre gamble to cater for possible interest rate rises, backfired badly when interest rates fell to historic lows, costing the companies millions in additional interest payments at upto 200%.

More than half of Portuguese electricity bills are for taxes and fees.

The country leads the EU ranking of prices when adjusted for purchasing power.
 

“Portugal is living on water that it does not have," according to the Association for Nature Portugal (ANP).

"Citizens, companies, farmers and the State must commit to the sustainable use of water in a country that is affected by water shortages and where this is expected to worsen in the near future," said the association.

A suspected paedophile, wanted by the authorities in Germany, has been stopped at Lisbon airport and detained.

The man arrived in Portugal on a flight from Dakar, Senegal, but SEF border control staff picked up the fact that there was an International Arrest Warrant in his name and detained him, pending deportation.

Silves council has suspended its municipal Municipal Master Plan (PDM) specifically to allow building work on an area of land adjacent to Zoomarine to enable the expansion of the theme park.

This decision was taken by the Council on Monday, May 20, and those interested now have a period of public participation that runs until June 3.

TAP Air Portugal, the leading airline from the UK to Portugal, has marked a historic point in its 74-year history. With the arrival of another A330neo – CS-TUI, which has been named King Afonso Henriques – the company has 100 aircraft in its fleet for the first time with 71 new aircraft due to arrive by 2025.

The new airplanes have allowed TAP to open new routes with the airline continuing to grow in Brazil, a market in which TAP retains market leadership in connections to Europe and where there has been a 22.8% increase in the number of passengers between 2015 and 2018.  

Portugal and Angola reinforced cooperation in the economy of the sea through a memorandum signed in Lisbon by the Minister of the Sea of ​​Portugal, Ana Paula Vitorino, and the Angolan Minister of Fisheries, Maria Antonieta Baptista, at the end of the forum "Entrepreneurs Portuguese and Angolans together for a sustainable cooperation of the Sea ".

 In a statement to the media, Ana Paula Vitorino stressed that the new agreement provides for "cooperation in all areas of the sea" such as fisheries, aquaculture and fish processing.

Money laundering through the real estate market is under further scrutiny and regulation with new rules from the government taking effect on June 26th.

The Institute of Public Markets for Real Estate and Construction (IMPIC) will have access to information from the Treasury for better control of the private purchase and sale of real estate.