Portuguese government cuts spending

Finance Minister Maria Luis Albuquerque Lisbon - Arab Today The Portuguese government will cut spending by 3.9 billion euros next year, 2.3 percent of the country's total economic output, it said Tuesday as it presented its 2014 draft budget. "These efforts are necessary to successfully conclude our rescue programme, which ends in June 2014," said Finance Minister Maria Luis Albuquerque. "The sacrifices requested are necessary to assure our future." Portugal, which is trying to regain full access to debt markets with the end of its three-year, 78-billion-euro ($106-billion) rescue plan from the European Union and International Monetary Fund, had already vowed to bring its deficit down to 4.0 percent of output next year from 5.5 percent in 2013. That meant the ruling centre-right coalition government, which took a heavy beating in local elections last month, had to trim spending by about 4.0 billion euros next year. Source: AFP