Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Portugal: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna grade (MBB, ranked #37 of 195).
Portugal — in Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain. Political status: semi-presidential republic. The country's capital is Lisbon; it covers 92,090 sq km. Independence: 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 1 December 1640 (independence reestablished after 60 years of Spanish rule); 5 October 1910 (republic proclaimed). Terrain: the west-flowing Tagus River divides the country: the north is mountainous toward the interior, while the south is characterized by rolling plains. Climate: maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south. Population: 10.2 million (2025 estimate). Population growth: +0.11% per year. Median age: 46.8 years. Li…
| Capital | Lisbon |
|---|---|
| Population | 10,194,277 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $448.226 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $41,900 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 1.9% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 2.4% |
| Unemployment | 6.4% |
| Public debt | 125.7% of GDP (2017 est.) |
| Exports | $144.237 billion (2024 est.) |
| Imports | $136.976 billion (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 81.9 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 46.8 |
| Urbanization | 67.9% of total population (2023) |
| Government | semi-presidential republic |
| Independence | 1143 (Kingdom of Portugal recognized); 1 December 1640 (independence reestablished after 60 years of Spanish rule); 5 October 1910 (republic proclaimed) |
| Languages | Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official, but locally used) |
MBB · 63/100 — The Magna grade is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — five dimensions, 100+ indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
An uneventful quarter, recorded without embellishment: no breakthrough to celebrate, no setback to mourn.
The longer forces — demographics, trade routes, regional balances — kept doing what they do, and the country rode them steadily.
Iron ore, Copper, Zinc, Tin, Tungsten, Silver, Gold, Uranium, Marble, Gypsum, Salt, Hydropower.
Luís Montenegro — Prime Minister. President Marcelo REBELO DE SOUSA (since 9 March 2016)
Portugal maintains 75 embassies and 42 consulates abroad, hosts 87 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, UN Geneva, EU Brussels, NATO Brussels, OECD Paris, UNESCO Paris, OSCE Vienna, CoE Strasbourg. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 75 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 42 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 87 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, UN Geneva, EU Brussels, NATO Brussels, OECD Paris, UNESCO Paris, OSCE Vienna, CoE Strasbourg |
Source: Abroad: Lowy GDI 2024 via Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_diplomatic_missions . Hosted: Consular Affairs Center in-country ranking, Mar 2026 (Lisbon 87). Multilateral rosters as for AUT.
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 1793 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 128 + 65 heliports (registration prefix CR, CS) |
| Major seaports | Aveiro, Funchal, Lagos, Lisboa, Sines |
| Railways | 2526 km |
| Pipelines | 1,344 km gas, 11 km oil, 188 km refined products (2013) |
| Top container ports (TEU) | Sines (1,420,000 TEU, 2019) |
Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport (FNC) — Funchal; Faro - Gago Coutinho International Airport (FAO) — Faro; Francisco de Sá Carneiro Airport (OPO) — Porto; João Paulo II Airport (PDL) — Ponta Delgada; Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS) — Lisbon; Aerodromo Goncalves Lobato (Viseu Airport) (VSE) — Viseu; Bragança Airport (BGC) — Bragança; Cascais Airport (CAT) — Cascais; Flores Airport (FLW) — Santa Cruz das Flores; Graciosa Airport (GRW) — Santa Cruz da Graciosa.
Showing 10 of 15 major airports.
| LNG import terminals | Sines |
|---|
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | semi-presidential republic |
|---|---|
| Last election | 2025 — parliamentary (snap); 2025-05-18; winner: Luís Montenegro (Democratic Alliance (AD)); Snap election after Montenegro lost confidence vote over family business scandal Al Jazeera |
| Next election | 2029 — parliamentary (scheduled) |
Source: constitutional schedule / public election calendar
MBB · 63 Ranked #37 of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Portugal.
Historical timeline of Portugal
