The BusinessEurope Barometer 2026 has revealed that only 19% of businesses quizzed think that there have been improvements in conditions to attract investments to the EU while a third think they have got worse.
And in Portugal the banking system is continuing to fail when it comes to channeling financial resources to productive sectors and in particular to innovative projects.
This diagnosis was made by the barometer which makes an annual evaluation of competitiveness in Europe based on feedback from its members in what is the largest European business confederation whose members include the Portuguese Industrial Confederation (CIP).
Moreover, despite the criticisms, the survey from BusinessEurope shows that the majority of those businesses in Europe canvassed are satisfied or very satisfied with the banking sector.
Yet when asked whether they are satisfied with the way the banking sector works in their country, Portuguese businesspeople responded that they are “dissatisfied” and justify this assessment on the lack of access to credit, given that “access to financing from other countries is not an option for the majority of Portuguese SMEs”.
This assessment contrasts with that of European companies in general, as almost 50% say they are “satisfied” with the way the banking sector works in their country, around 12% said they are “very satisfied” and less than 20% say they are “dissatisfied”.
Those questioned also thought that reforms were badly implemented and that too much regulation was harming Europe’s competitiveness and demand urgent measures to relieve companies and attract investment.
