Portuguese government debt was the equivalent of 126.2 percent of gross domestic product last year, exactly as envisaged in the budget for that year, Xinhua reports.

The Chinese state-run news agency says debt undershot the target of 127.7 percent of GDP set by the European Union.

The report says economic growth of 2.7 percent last year, the fastest rate since 2000, helped reduce debt as a proportion of GDP from 130.1 percent the year before.

The government forecasts that the proportion will shrink to 123.5 percent this year.