--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-32/portugal-a-paradox-in-productivity/" title: "Portugal: A Paradox in Productivity" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-13T07:42:34+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-13T07:42:34+00:00" post_type: "ipm" summary: "" ipm_issue_period: - "Spring 2017" ipm_keyword: - "capital" - "convergence" - "EU" - "knowledge capital" - "labour" - "misallocation" - "Portugal" - "productivity" - "skills" - "structural reform" ipm_research_theme: - "Productivity trends and comparisons" ipm_country_focus: - "Europe" - "Portugal" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/IPM_50_banner.webp" status: "publish" --- # Portugal: A Paradox in Productivity Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-32/portugal-a-paradox-in-productivity/ # Portugal: A Paradox in Productivity [Download full PDF article](https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IPM-Issue-32-8-Alves.pdf) Cite this article × Cite this article as: Alves, Ricardo Pinheiro. 2017. “Portugal: A Paradox in Productivity.” International Productivity Monitor, No. 32 (Spring 2017): 137–160. https://www.csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-32/portugal-a-paradox-in-productivity/ ## Author: - Ricardo Pinheiro Alves GEE; IADE-UE ## IPM Issue 32 Spring 2017 pp. 137–160 ## Related IPM articles [The Relationship between Efficiencies Defenses for Mergers and TFP Growth Robin Shaban Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 82–102](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/the-relationship-between-efficiencies-defenses-for-mergers-and-tfp-growth/) [Labour Productivity as a Measure of Technological Change Ulrich Kohli Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 64–81](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/labour-productivity-as-a-measure-of-technological-change/) [Adult Skills and Productivity: New Evidence from PIAAC 2023 Dan Andrews, Balázs Égert, Christine de La Maisonneuve Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 41–63](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/adult-skills-and-productivity-new-evidence-from-piaac-2023/) [The Potential Impact of Pro-competitive Regulatory Reforms on Productivity and Growth in Canada Gilbert Cette, Jimmy Lopez, Giuseppe Nicoletti, Océane Vernerey Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 3–40](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/the-potential-impact-of-pro-competitive-regulatory-reforms-on-productivity-and-growth-in-canada/) [IPM Issue 49 Editors’ Overview Andrew Sharpe, Bart van Ark, Paul Schreyer Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 1–2](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/) [ONS Response to ‘Are UK Regional Productivity Disparities Really Narrowing?’ Richard Prothero Spring 2025 | IPM Issue 48 | pp. 85–89](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-48/ons-response-to-are-uk-regional-productivity-disparities-really-narrowing/) [Are UK Regional Productivity Disparities Really Narrowing? 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The objective of this paper is to better understand the larger slowdown in productivity growth in Portugal than the one occurring in those countries by considering its main determinants. It presents a set of different reasons for the divergence with developed economies since the mid-1990s that are associated with an increasing misallocation of capital, labour and skills both at a sectoral and firm level. Moreover, it outlines some policy proposals to enhance aggregate productivity growth in the Portuguese economy within a framework of growing integration in global markets. Portugal is experiencing a slowdown of pro- Le Portugal a un niveau de productivité inférieur aux économies avancées, mais, paradoxalement, l’amélioration récente de plusieurs de ses déterminants n’a pas conduit à une convergence des niveaux de productivité. L’objectif de cet article est de mieux comprendre le plus grand ralentissement de la croissance de la productivité au Portugal que dans ces autres pays, en examinant ses principaux déterminants. Il présente un ensemble de raisons différentes pour la divergence avec les économies développées depuis le milieu des années 1990, associées à une mauvaise allocation croissante du capital, de la main-d’œuvre et des compétences tant au niveau sectoriel qu’au niveau des entreprises. [Download full PDF](https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IPM-Issue-32-8-Alves.pdf)