Portuguese Finance Minister, Vítor Gaspar, visited the United States this week to meet Wall Street investment bankers and hedge funds representatives. The meeting scheduled for Thursday and Friday addressed the recent accomplishments of the Portuguese administration financial adjustment program.
Gaspar concluded his visit to New York on Friday after meeting with investment representatives from Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan.
The Portuguese Finance Minister traveled to Washington on Friday for meetings with IMF director Christine Lagarde and leading economist Olivier Blanchard.
According to Margan Stanley analysts, cited by Bloomberg, “Portugal may need to ask for a second bailout by September as the nation is hamstrung by weak economic growth and lack of access to bond markets at affordable rates.”
The Portuguese administration is implementing a program of austerity measures according to the 78 billion euro program negotiated last May with Portugal’s European Union partners and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Gaspar has visited the United States last March for high-level talks in Washington with Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.
Vítor Gaspar, 52, became Finance Minister in June of last year as part of the current Portuguese government headed by Premier Pedro Passos Coelho.
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General Information on Portugal
Official Name: Portuguese Republic
Capital: Lisbon (Current local time)
Government Type: Parliamentary democracy
Population: 10,642,836
Area: 92,391 sq. km., including the Azores and Madeira Islands; slightly smaller than Indiana
Languages: Portuguese
Literacy: Total population: 93.3%; Male: 95.5%; Female: 91.3%
Year of Independence: 1143
