Portugal beats recession with export-led growth

Bailed-out Portugal broke free from recession in the second quarter of the year with growth of 1.1 percent, showing the first expansion for two years, official data showed on Wednesday. The recovery was driven mainly by exports, and shrinkage of the economy on a 12-month comparison was halved the data showed. After shrinking for 10 months in a row, gross domestic product grew by 1.1 percent in the second quarter from output in the first quarter, but shrank by 2.0 percent on a 12-month basis, the data showed. The improvement in the second quarter reflected mainly "significant acceleration of exports of goods and services," said the national statistics office Ine, which published the data. In April, exports surged by 16.0 percent and in May by 5.0 percent, on a 12-month basis. In the first quarter the economy had shrunk by 0.4 percent from output in the last quarter of last year and by 4.1 percent on a 12-month comparison.