The economy of Portugal within the European Union: 1990–2002

This article analyzes the impact of the EU on Portugal’s economy, how the EU rules and regulations have affected the country’s policy-making style, and the impact of EU’s transfer of resources. It shows that Portugal has greatly benefitted from joining the EU: the rapid exposure to foreign competition has forced modernization of many sectors; there was a retreat of the state from direct involvement in economic activities and the creation of a number of new export-oriented sectors, and EU transfers were effectively applied in modernizing the country’s infrastructure. However, increased productivity has not improved equity from both an income distribution point of view and from regional income concentration.