Latest news and stories about investment in work in Portugal for expats and residents.
Lufthansa Technik, the German group's aircraft maintenance company, expects to receive environmental approval “soon” to proceed in the summer with the construction of the facility in Santa Maria da Feira, a 309 million euro investment that will create 526 jobs by 2030. Another project that may come to Portugal is a...
Four years after the invasion of Ukraine, companies in the defence industry are experiencing significant growth. The high levels of investment already announced are attracting other sectors, such as technology, which is now essential in war planning. Traditional industries, such as textiles and footwear, are also taking advantage of the high demand.
Banco Santander increased the number of senior executives receiving over one million euros in 2025 to 458, a 10% rise compared to 2024. According to the Prudential Relevance Report, this figure compares to 318 executives in 2024. The bank attributes the increase to higher bonuses following record profits, with the majority of these high earners based in the US and UK due to more competitive labour markets. The figures include deferred variable remuneration and severance payments. Santander also noted that the 'identified group' of staff, which includes those in risk-taking or control functions, totalled 1,336 people, receiving a combined remuneration of 1.27 billion euros.
São Paulo businessman Thiago Tavares plans to expand the Holy Sandwich Shop restaurant in Portugal and invest in social projects in the country. “We are studying where we can help and contribute,” he says.
The CEO of Mota-Engil states that the ongoing war will affect the construction sector.
Beyond Vision, a Portuguese drone manufacturer, is expanding internationally with a focus on both civil and defence sectors. CEO Dário Pedro discusses the company's growth, its entry into the US market, and the challenges posed by strict regulations in Portugal, particularly regarding the use of drones for emergency response and civil operations.
Portugal's 10 largest markets for the export of goods and services will experience a year of mild growth, according to macroeconomic forecasts from the team of economists at Coface, a French credit insurer present in 200 countries, including Portugal. It has 100,000 clients and an exposure of 715 billion euros.
There are eleven blue ships transporting goods around the world. They are identified as Tailwind Shipping Lines, but are actually linked to a brand well-known to the Portuguese: Lidl. In 2022, the Schwarz Group, based in Germany and owner of Lidl, created a global transport network. Today, it operates 11 ships and five more are on the way, with construction expected to begin in 2026 at a cost of up to 500 million dollars. In an economic and geopolitical context marked by uncertainty, the company does not want to be dependent on distribution chains it does not control. The goal is to transport cargo from the Asian market to Europe, where Lidl has established stores in most countries. With this in mind, the Schwarz Group made a bold move, the first of its kind by a retail giant. It should be noted that most (nine) of the vessels in circulation do not belong to Tailwind Shipping Lines itself. Only the remaining two are owned by the company. In total, there are about 12,600 stores spread across 31 countries on three continents (Europe, North America, and Asia). In Portugal, it has more than 280 stores and 8,000 employees. Lidl increases entry-level salary by 11% to one thousand euros gross in January; Lidl invests eight million in a new store in Évora.
In an increasingly demanding international context, Portugal faces the imperative of strengthening its business base as an essential condition for economic and social progress. National Accounts data show GDP growth of 1.9% in 2025, following 2.2% in 2024. This is a sign of resilience, but clearly insufficient to ensure rapid and sustained convergence with more developed European economies. Growth was based exclusively on domestic demand, with the contribution of net external demand being negative for the second consecutive year—a reality that deserves deep reflection, as the Portuguese economy cannot structurally depend on domestic dynamics to sustain output expansion; it is a model that proves vulnerable and limits the potential for competitive assertion in the European and global space. Furthermore, investment is showing signs of slowing down. Excluding changes in inventories, Gross Fixed Capital Formation has been decelerating, with a decline even observed in investment in machinery and equipment. When companies invest less in technology, productive modernisation, and innovation, future productivity gains are compromised, and the ability to compete in increasingly sophisticated external markets is reduced. This is an especially worrying situation during a period of implementation of crucial European funds, such as PT 2030. Export intensity has also regressed, standing at 43.6% of GDP in 2025, a value lower than that recorded in previous years and far from the levels we aim to reach. The escalation of the conflict involving the United States of America, Israel, and Iran, with disruptions already visible in one of the main arteries of global energy trade (the Strait of Hormuz), accentuates high international uncertainty, with repercussions on rising production costs (energy prices and maritime freight). For an economy heavily dependent on energy imports, such as the European one, this risk cannot be underestimated. Persistent inflationary pressure could lead to a tightening of monetary policy, with rising interest rates, which would have consequences for business investment, making financing more expensive and conditioning strategic decisions, precisely at a time when we need more innovation and international expansion to grow solidly. It is up to us to create the conditions for companies to invest, innovate with ambition, and strengthen their international presence. For all these reasons, the motto of the Action Programme for the current AEP board's mandate continues to make perfect sense: 'Valuing Companies to Serve Portugal', so that we may be capable of bringing our country closer to the core of Europe's most developed economies.
They employ 1,700 workers in Portugal, generating over 100 million in annual economic impact for the country. With the country's need to respond to the strengthening of its defence capabilities, Airbus sees an opportunity here to reinforce its commitment to Portugal, admits Nathalie Hellard-Lambic, General Manager of Airbus in Portugal, to ECO/eRadar.
It is all or nothing for Bondalti. More than two years after the launch of the takeover bid by the chemical company owned by the José de Mello Group for the Spanish giant Ercros, the acceptance period for the offer ends this Friday. With only a few hours left until the deadline for the operation, it is unknown whether...
The Portuguese real estate market saw record highs in 2025, with prices and transactions on the rise. The five largest real estate agency networks in Portugal reported a significant revenue growth of 24.4%, attributed to an influx of nearly 25,000 house sellers contributing to the booming market.
Every day, justice declares insolvency for 17 individuals, with commerce and workshops leading the charge in business bankruptcies. The crisis is also escalating in sectors such as hospitality, catering, and agriculture, indicating a broader economic downturn.
Economist João Rodrigues dos Santos warns that the €2.5 million package announced by the Prime Minister to support populations and businesses affected by Storm Kristin is likely insufficient. He argues the sum will fall short of actual needs and calls for larger, targeted structural investment in climate adaptation and resilience — prioritising long-term public safety, sustainable infrastructure and policy measures rather than one-off relief.
Portugal is seeking to enhance its appeal to Middle Eastern investors, particularly from Qatar, by shifting its marketing strategy beyond just its favorable climate. In Doha, representatives from Startup Portugal are engaging with local entrepreneurs to promote investment opportunities in the country.
Luz Prime, a Rio de Janeiro–founded tech firm (2007), has expanded into Portugal with financial management software targeted at SMEs. The company describes the Portuguese tax environment as both a challenge and an opportunity, highlighting the demand for tools that automate finance tasks while ensuring local compliance. Its entry increases competition in the SME financial-tech market and underscores critical success factors: product localisation for Portuguese tax and accounting practices, competitive pricing for smaller firms, and partnerships with local advisers and integrators. Market uptake will hinge on how well Luz Prime adapts its offering to regulatory requirements and established local competitors.
Guimarães has been chosen as the site for the presentation of Portugal’s national space strategy, a symbolic starting point for mayor Ricardo Araújo’s plan to turn the municipality — home to the Guimarães Space Hub — into an Iberian leader in the aerospace sector. Local authorities are pursuing rehabilitation of facilities, investment and economic activation to attract industry, create jobs and build a skills pipeline. Realising that ambition will require sustained funding, coordination with national and international partners, and targeted policies to translate strategy into industrial growth rather than a one‑off showcase.
A preliminary protocol for Banco Português de Fomento’s new Financial Instrument for Innovation and Competitiveness (IFIC) foresees a €1 billion credit line covering projects in reindustrialisation, defence and artificial intelligence. Companies using bank loans to finance the portion of IFIC‑supported projects will benefit from a two‑year grace period, easing early repayment pressures and potentially encouraging private co‑finance. The measure signals a targeted industrial‑policy push to mobilise investment and employment in strategic sectors while leveraging public support to unlock additional bank lending.
TAP is investing €20 million to build a new aircraft maintenance hub and hangar in Porto, a project due to take two years and expected to create about 200 jobs. The move is intended to increase the carrier’s maintenance self-sufficiency, reduce outsourcing and boost operational autonomy as the airline undergoes privatisation, while Porto’s network will be strengthened with services to Terceira, Praia, Tel Aviv and an enhanced link to Boston.
Compete will open five funding calls in January for large companies, accounting for roughly one third of the programme’s corporate allocation under Portugal 2030, the agency’s president told ECO dos Fundos. The calls come with strengthened support rates aimed at accelerating project implementation and unlocking private investment. For large firms, the tranche presents a concentrated opportunity to secure EU-backed grants that could expedite capital expenditure, support job-creating projects and align corporate investment with Portugal 2030 priorities. The measure also signals an administrative push to deploy funds faster, with potential sectoral and regional impacts depending on application uptake and award conditions.
Galp and Moeve have entered detailed talks to combine their refining operations and filling-station networks, a complex transaction that is likely to be lengthy and closely scrutinised. The Portuguese Communist Party has already criticised the proposed deal and the government will have a role in the approval process, raising political as well as regulatory stakes. The transaction will test Brussels’ evolving approach to competition and regulation in the energy sector, with implications for pricing, investment and market structure in Portugal.
Julien Jarjoura, an investor based in Switzerland, has acquired Claire’s European business, preserving roughly 200 jobs in Portugal and maintaining the brand’s retail footprint across Europe. The purchase effectively separates the continental operation from insolvency proceedings affecting Claire’s in the United States, the United Kingdom and Ireland, stabilising local employment and stores while broader group restructuring and creditor processes continue.
Despite public reticence from Virgílio Lima, the Mutualist Association has reportedly decided not to reappoint Pedro Leitão as CEO of Banco Montepio after his mandate expired at the end of last year. The bank is said to have settled on José Azevedo Pereira — a former director — as the successor. The move signals a leadership change at Banco Montepio that will shape its strategic direction and investor and member relations going forward.
After Portugal’s Tekever became a unicorn, 2026 looks set to remain a liquid year for investors despite geopolitical uncertainties that are reshaping financial markets. Venture capital will continue to favour AI startups, but a growing emphasis on dual‑use and defence‑adjacent technologies means investors will weigh strong commercial upside against ethical, regulatory and geopolitical risks. The year will therefore be defined by opportunities for tech and defence crossover, active deal‑making, and increased scrutiny from policymakers and funds alike.
