Employment opportunities in Portugal grew in the second quarter of 2013 compared to the first three months of the year, making it the first time since 2010 that the country has been able to register a positive result, according to data from Eurostat released earlier this week.
The same data shows, however, that employment dropped 4% compared to the same period last year.
Portugal’s 0.8% growth places it among the highest rates of development in the European Union (EU) compared to the previous period.
Estonia was the only country that registered a more significant improvement, increasing jobs by 1.5%, while Lithuania also saw a 0.8% growth.
On the other hand, Cyprus took a blow of minus 2,1% to its employment opportunities, while Holland, Slovakia and Slovenia registered minus 0.4%.
In the euro zone, the number of employed individuals dropped 0,1%, while it remained stable in the EU. Compared to the previous year, however, the rates dropped 0,1% in the euro zone and 0.4% in the EU.
