The data comes from the National Statistics Institute (INE), made available to ECO, and also reveals that in the first three months of the year, total Portuguese exports rose 7.7% year-on-year and imports rose 7%. However, the numbers hide details about the trade relationship with the United States, which already appears to reflect the effect of the tariffs.

In US purchases, there was a 30.5% growth between January and March, compared to the same period in the previous year. The weight of the USA in total Portuguese imports in the first three months of the year increased from 1.8% to 2.2%.

This performance was influenced by the 44,305.9% increase in grain imports, a product that went from representing €95.9 thousand in the first quarter of 2024 to €42.6 million in the first quarter of this year. In other words, if in the reference period this good had no weight in the total goods imported by Portugal from the USA, now it weighs 7.2%.

Excluding fuels and mineral oils, which rose 8.95% and represent 43.7% of total goods imported from the USA, imports of machinery and equipment rose 253.2%, to 53.56 million euros, with a weight of 9.1%, and aircraft and special equipment 951%, to 36.7 million euros, with a weight of 6.2%.

Taking March alone, the year-on-year increase of 115.8% to 190.2 million euros stands out, although it fell 28.9% in monthly terms.

Exports of medicines and furniture soared

Sales of goods to the United States were slightly below those seen in the first quarter of 2024, standing at 1.313 billion euros. The weight of the US in total Portuguese exports also deteriorated, going from 6.8% in the first quarter of 2024 to 6.2% in the first three months of this year.

Among the main goods, there was a 32.1% growth in the first quarter compared to the same period last year in pharmaceutical products, which were worth 463.8 million euros (when discounting transactions for cash or following work to order, the value is lower: 399 million), with a weight of 35.3% in total exports to the USA, and 31.9% in furniture and mattresses, to 39.2 million euros.

These increases were not, however, enough to offset the 43.8% drop in mineral fuels and mineral oils to 133.4 million euros. There were also drops of 19.6% in electrical machines, equipment and materials, 19% in nuclear reactors, boilers and machines, 13% in cast iron, iron or steel works and 18.3% in cast iron, iron and steel.

Isolating the month of March, it can be seen that Portuguese exports to the United States fell by 8.6% in annual terms, to 565 million euros, but rose by 34.8% in monthly terms.