APPARENTLY, THE portuguese continue to be pessimistic about the future, due to the rising cost of living.
According to a survey carried out by Aximage, 57.1 per cent of those asked said life had become more difficult in the country. This is not surprising as in the past 12 months, natural gas has shot up by five per cent, bottled butane has soared by 28 per cent, diesel has risen 27 per cent since January 2005 and petrol has climbed 37 per cent since January 2005.
The cost of taking a taxi in Lisbon has increased by 4.8 per cent and Euribor mortgage rates have gone up by 28 per cent this year alone. Public transport costs have risen by five per cent since January this year and bank savings accounts are only bringing in around 0.44 per cent, due to generally low interest rates.
In the survey, the public were also asked about life in various categories. Some 43.5 per cent said that their family budget was getting tighter, while 57.1 per cent thought that Portugal’s education system was deteriorating; 34.1 per cent also believed the health system was going down hill.
