Portugal's economy tanks 3.9% in first quarter amid pandemic

Portugal's economy contracted 3.9% in the first quarter from the preceding three-month period as the coronavirus epidemic and subsequent restrictions on the movement started taking their toll mainly in March, official data showed on Friday.

The National Statistics Institute also said in its flash estimate that the country's gross domestic product shrank 2.4% compared to the same period a year earlier.

In the fourth quarter of 2019, the economy grew 0.7% quarter-on-quarter and 2.2% year-on-year.