About 40 percent of merchants in Portugal will soon accept China UnionPay cards, Xinhua reports.

The Chinese government-run news agency says the announcement was made on Monday by UnionPay International, a subsidiary of China UnionPay.

China UnionPay chairman Ge Huayong was quoted as saying all point of sale terminals in Portugal will accept the cards by the end of next year. UnionPay hopes to improve mobile QuickPass availability, card issuance and online payments in Portugal.

The number of overnight visitors to Portugal reached 154.400 people last year, up by 36.4 percent from the previous year, Portuguese newspaper Expresso reports.

UnionPay cards are said to be the most convenient payment method for Chinese tourists.

UnionPay is accepted in 39 countries and regions in Europe, a network covering about 2 million merchants.