Earlier in the day, the European Commission recommended not to impose fines on Portugal and Spain for missing their 3 percent GDP targets and proposed the Council of the European Union to give Madrid and Lisbon additional time to reach the 3-percent levels.
"The government has taken into consideration the recommendations made in the context of the supposed fine as for Portugal. We consider that it is very good news for Portugal, for Europe, for construction of Europe," Silva said, as quoted by the Jornal de Negocios newspaper.
Spain's 5.1-percent of GDP deficit last year fell short of the targeted 4.2 percent, while Portugal missed its 2.5-percent target with a 4.4 percent deficit. However, Spain's economy is currently growing at a rate of over 3 percent per year after returning to growth in 2014. Portugal's economy also returned to growth by early 2014.
