Portugal

Tourism-dependent Portugal posts worst GDP slump since 1936

Portugal last year recorded its steepest economic contraction since 1936 as both domestic and external demand weakened due to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in tourism. Gross Domestic Product fell 7.6%…

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Portugal to share COVID-19 shots with its former colonies in Africa, E.Timor

Portugal will send 5% of its COVID-19 vaccine shots to a group of Portuguese-speaking African countries and to the tiny nation of East Timor in the second half of the…

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End of lockdown in Portugal still out of sight

While the number of COVID-19 cases in Portugal is falling, the the far slower decline in hospitalisations and intensive care patients has left Lisbon residents resigned to the nationwide lockdown…

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Portugal’s tourism sector slumps back to 1980s levels amid pandemic

LISBON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Portugal's once-booming tourism sector suffered its worst results since the mid-1980s last year as the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns worldwide grounded flights and kept visitors…

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Portugal’s TAP may need more aid than planned in 2021, minister says

LISBON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Portugal may have to provide more than the 500 million euros ($606 million) it budgeted for ailing airline TAP this year due to the worsening…

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Portugal extends suspension of Brazil, UK flights

Portugal extended a suspension of flights to and from Brazil and the UK to March 1, with only humanitarian and repatriation flights allowed, the interior ministry said in a statement.…

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UPDATED: Overstretched hospitals in Portugal struggle to cope

Portugal extended on Thursday a lockdown until March 1 or perhaps later to tackle its worst surge of COVID-19 infections since the pandemic began. “The situation is still extremely serious…

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Germany sends doctors and ventilators to help Portugal with COVID-19 crisis

BERLIN, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Germany's military will send more than 20 doctors and nurses to Portugal, where space in hospital intensive care units is running out after a surge…

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As pandemic worsens, Portugal reports nearly half of all its COVID-19 deaths in January

LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal reported close to half of all its COVID-19 deaths in January, highlighting the severe worsening of the pandemic in a country whose plight has caused several…

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Portugal close to running out of ICU beds for COVID patients

LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal said on Saturday it only had seven vacant beds left in intensive care units (ICUs) set up for COVID-19 cases on its mainland, as a surge in infections prompted the authorities…

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Portugal curbs travel, extends lockdown in face of world’s worst virus surge

LISBON, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Portugal extended a nationwide lockdown until mid-February and announced curbs on international travel on Thursday, as Prime Minister Antonio Costa accepted blame for the world's worst coronavirus surge, with hospitals on the verge of being overrun. With…

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Germany sends medical experts to Portugal as hospitals face COVID-19 crisis

LISBON (Reuters) - Hospitals in Lisbon flooded with COVID-19 patients are at risk of failing to meet soaring demand for oxygen, the head of Portugal's doctors association said as Germany…

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Portugal urged to seek international help as COVID-19 deaths hit record

LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal's government was urged to transfer COVID-19 patients abroad on Tuesday as deaths hit a record high and the oxygen supply system of a large hospital near…

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Photo Story: Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa re-elected as Portugal’s President

Presidential candidate, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, delivers his victory speech for being re-elected as Portugal's President after winning the 2021 presidential elections, in Lisbon, Portugal, 24 January 2021. Marcelo Rebelo…

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Portugal holds presidential election on Sunday as COVID-19 cases spiral

Portuguese voters - largely confined to their homes due to a strict COVID-19 lockdown - will pick a new president on Sunday, but many fear going to the polls could…

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Portugal identifies first case of South African coronavirus variant

The first case of the South African coronavirus variant was identified in Portugal on Friday, health institute Ricardo Jorge told Lusa news agency, as the country struggles to contain a…

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UPDATED: Portugal to shut schools as pandemic worsens

Portugal is preparing to shut all kindergartens, schools and universities from Friday to tackle a steep rise in coronavirus cases, Lusa news agency and Publico newspaper said on Thursday. The…

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Portugal’s health system on brink of collapse as COVID-19 cases surge

LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal's public health system is on the verge of collapsing as hospitals in the areas worst-affected by a worrying surge in coronavirus cases are quickly running out…

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Complaints after Portuguese prosecutors acknowledge spying on reporters

LISBON (Reuters) - Groups representing journalists and lawyers in Portugal complained of a threat to press freedom on Wednesday, after prosecutors acknowledged having spied on two reporters to try to…

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Portugal considers ordering private hospitals to take COVID patients as deaths hit record

LISBON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Portugal said it was considering the option of ordering private hospitals to treat coronavirus patients and provide beds and equipment as the country reported a…

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Reporters walk out on Portuguese, French far-right leaders over COVID-19 fears

LISBON (Reuters) - The election campaign launch by Portugal's far-right presidential candidate, Andre Ventura, got off to a shaky start on Friday when reporters walked out on his joint news…

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Portugal considers new lockdown as COVID infections surge

Portugal will decide next week on potential tougher restrictions that could amount to a new lockdown if a worrying surge in coronavirus infections continues, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said. “If…

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Photo Story: Madeira Island in Portugal hit by powerful storm

Photos from the municipality of Machico in the eastern of Madeira, that was one of the most affected by the bad weather that hit throughout the archipelago of Madeira, Machico,…

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Photo Story: Lisbon lights mark the start of Portuguese Presidency of the EU

A circle of stars is projected in blue light onto Augusta Street Arc to mark the day Portugal takes over the EU Presidency, in Lisbon, Portugal, on the 01 January…

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Portugal to use EU presidency to bolster bloc’s vaccination drive

Financial Times - Rolling out the EU’s mass vaccination programme will be one of Portugal’s top priorities when it takes over the six-month rotating EU presidency on Friday as a…

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Coronavirus variant detected in Portugal’s Madeira

LISBON, Dec 27 (Reuters) - The new variant of the coronavirus linked to a rapid rise in infections in Britain has been detected on the Portuguese island of Madeira, the…

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Five injured in partial collapse of Lisbon building

LISBON (Reuters) - Five people were injured when a residential building in central Lisbon partially collapsed on Sunday morning following an explosion, the local fire department said. A spokeswoman told…

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Portugal believes Brexit trade deal still possible

Portugal’s foreign minister said on Friday he believed a trade deal between Britain and the European Union was still possible and said a close relationship between both sides was essential…

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Portugal imposes overnight curfew on New Year’s Eve to cut spread of coronavirus

LISBON (Reuters) - An overnight curfew from 11 p.m. will come into force in Portugal on New Year's Eve, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said on Thursday, as the government introduces…

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Photo Story: Christmas Lights in Lisbon

Various photos of the Christmas lights in downtown Lisbon, Portugal. A slow shutter speed picture of cars driving near Christmas lights in downtown Lisbon, Portugal. Via EPA-EFE/JOSE SENA GOULAO

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Portugal border service chief quits after fatal beating of Ukrainian traveller

LISBON (Reuters) - The head of Portugal's SEF border service resigned on Wednesday after months of backlash over the fatal beating of a Ukrainian man detained at Lisbon airport for…

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Portugal approves extension of COVID-19 emergency

Portugal’s parliament on Friday approved a 15-day extension of a state of emergency to Dec. 23 under a decree that envisages a further extension into January, as the government prepared…

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Portugal can get Pfizer COVID-19 shots within 3 days of EU approval, company says

Pfizer's Portuguese unit said the pharmaceutical company would be able to distribute its COVID-19 vaccine in the Iberian country three days after the European Union's medicines agency (EMA) has given…

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Portugal to ban domestic travel, close schools around national holidays

Portugal is to ban domestic travel and close schools around two upcoming holidays in a bid to reduce the spread of coronavirus ahead of Christmas, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said…

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Portugal’s health system under pressure as cases hit new record

Confirmed coronavirus cases in Portugal pushed past the 200,000 mark on Friday as the number of new daily infections reached a record high, putting increasing pressure on an already fragile…

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Portugal expands COVID-19 curfew and weekend lockdown to more areas

Portugal announced an expansion of a nightly curfew and weekend lockdown already in place across more than 100 municipalities to a further 77 areas as it scrambles to contain the…

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Portugal imposes local night-time curfews as COVID-19 cases hit record

Portugal will impose localised night-time curfews from Monday to contain the spread of the coronavirus as the number of cases reached a record high, Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced in the early…

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Portugal parliament approve COVID-19 state of emergency

Portugal's parliament approved a new state of emergency starting on Monday to fight the spread of the coronavirus that has put the healthcare system under pressure. The initial state of…

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Portugal PM Costa asks president to declare COVID-19 emergency

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa asked the country's president on Monday to declare a state of emergency as a preventive measure to fight the spread of coronavirus at a time…

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Portugal reimposes partial lockdown in most of the country

Portugal's government on Saturday announced new lockdown restrictions from Nov. 4 for most of the country, telling people to stay at home except for outings for work, school or shopping,…

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Spain and Portugal adopt tough measures to curd Covid-19 increase

Spain will close bars and restaurants across Catalonia for the next 15 days following a surge in cases, as the country tackles one of the highest rates of infection in…

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Photo Story: October pilgrimage to Fatima Sanctuary

The procession of the Our Lady of Fatima in the Shrine of Fatima, Portugal, that was held on Tuesday 13 October 2020. According to the plan already approved by the…

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Photo Story: October Pilgrimage to Fatima Sanctuary in times of pandemic

A pilgrim sits in one of painted circles that delimit the area and distance between pilgrims in the Marian shrine Fatima Sanctuary, Fatima, Ourem, Portugal. The shrine enclosure features painted…

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Pandemic forces Europe’s largest tech event to go fully online

Web Summit, Europe's biggest technology conference, will be held entirely online in December due to the coronavirus outbreak, which has forced the cancellation or postponement of many major events this…

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Portuguese workers demand higher salaries

Thousands of workers gathered in cities and towns across Portugal on Saturday demanding higher wages and more government action to protect jobs threatened by the coronavirus pandemic. During the peaceful…

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Back-to-work measures tightened in Lisbon, restrictions on cafes near schools

Stricter measures will be adopted in Portugal's two biggest cities to contain a worrying rise in coronavirus cases as workers slowly return to offices and pupils gear up to go…

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Portugal ‘regrets’ England’s decision to remove country from safe travel list

Portugal's foreign ministry said it regrets England's decision on Thursday to reimpose a quarantine regime for travellers from mainland Portugal, which has hit the tourism-dependent country hard. "We regret the…

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Photo Story: Forest fire in Oliveira de Frades, Portugal

A child inside a car near a forest fire in Oliveira de Frades, northern Portugal. This forest fire mobilized 327 firemen, 103 land vehicles and 8 airplanes. People watch a…

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Portugal reported 486 new cases; record daily increase since May

Portugal reported 486 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, its biggest daily increase since the week its lockdown was lifted in May. The cumulative total of cases now is 59,943, the health…

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Portugal’s COVID-19 cases raise UK quarantine fears

As coronavirus cases in Portugal go up and down, fears are growing that Britain will reimpose a quarantine for people travelling from the country. It has been less than two…

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British flock to Portugal’s Algarve as quarantine rules lifted, airport struggles

Portugal is sending border control reinforcements to an airport in the sunny Algarve as authorities struggle to cope with a surge in arrivals of British tourists after quarantine rules were…

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Rise in Portugal’s unemployment slows, but jobless figure up 37% on year ago

The number of people registered as unemployed in Portugal edged up 0.2% in July from the previous month, but was 37% higher year-on-year due to the impact of the coronavirus…

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Portuguese President rescues two after kayak capsizes

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has helped rescue two women who came into difficulty at an Algarve beach when their kayak capsized. BBC reports that the president, 71, was…

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Portugal keeps Lisbon under stricter COVID curbs until end-August

The Portuguese capital and its surrounds will remain under tougher anti-coronavirus restrictions than the rest of the country until at least the end of August, the government said on Thursday.…

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Only 2.9% of Portuguese with antibodies to Covid-19

The percentage of the Portuguese population with antibodies (seroprevalence) to the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus is estimated at 2.9 percent, a lower than necessary value to achieve potential group immunity. According to…

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Photo Story: Fatal airplane crash during firefighting operations in Portugal

A Spanish fireman near the plane's wreckage of Canadair CL215 that was participating in the firefighting operations on Saturday at Peneda Geres National Park, Lindoso, Viana do Castelo, Portugal. The…

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Porto stun Benfica to clinch domestic double

Portuguese champions Porto completed the domestic double in style on Saturday as a pair of second-half headers by defender Chancel Mbemba gave them a 2-1 win over Benfica in the…

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