Reply #43: Portugal settles terms of €78bn bailout with EU and IMF

[Demeter]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/may/04/portugal-78bn-bailout-imf

...Portugal's caretaker government said that it had negotiated a €78bn bailout deal with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, but was waiting for opposition parties to agree.

Acting prime minister José Sócrates said that, under the terms of the deal, Portugal must slash its budget deficit from 9.1% to 5.9% this year, and then reduce it to 3% by 2013.

"The government has today reached an agreement with the international institutions regarding the financial aid to our country," Sócrates said in a televised address.

"Naturally, there are no financial assistance programs that are not demanding," he added. "The times we live in continue to imply efforts and a lot of work. Let no one doubt that."...