Official data indicate that Portuguese gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 1.8 percent in the second quarter of this year, the same growth rate as in the first quarter, Xinhua reports.

The Chinese government-run news agency quotes the Portuguese National Statistics Institute as saying the economy kept growing in spite of international disputes over trade.

The institute said the rate of growth this year might yet hit the target of 1.9 percent set by the government.

Last year the Portuguese economy expanded by 2.1 percent after recording a 1.7-percent growth in the final quarter, Xinhua says.