Portugal quit its 78-billion euro bailout scheme last May, having signed up to a rescue plan in 2011 as its borrowing costs soared.
By 2012 they stood at 18%. Today they are at 2.5% and GDP is forecast to grow in 2015 by 1.6%.
But are people feeling better off? The Troika of international creditors who demanded Portugal bite the bullet of austerity is little-loved, with many saying their loans have placed an unequal burden on the people.
Unemployment remains stubbornly high however, especially among the young. Many young people have left Portugal in search of work.
The years of austerity have wrought profound changes on Portuguese society, Not only is there a perception of a “lost generation” forced abroad in search of work, but some everyday habits have changed.
Restaurants are far less busy, for example, as people have switched to home cooking to save money, robbing Portugal’s urban nightlife of some if its zip. However the distribution of free meals to the poor has explode
