Crisis in restoration – but which crisis? Álvaro Santos Pereira’s question and numbers

Governor of the Bank of Portugal looks at official data and shows that he does not agree with the perception of the crisis. “The numbers speak for themselves.”

The sector of restoration is “not good”. Those who suffer most are businesses “outside tourist centers”, due to evident “regional asymmetries”.

Ana Jacinto, general secretary of AHRESP – Portuguese Hotel, Catering and Similar Association, last summer: several factors are harming restaurant revenues in Portugal.

“This restoration is not going well due to the strong impact of inflation on the prices of raw materials — we must not forget that we have come out of a pandemic, but we have a debt that is being paid —, the effort that these companies have made to increase salaries. All of this has led to the sector not being as well as we would like it to be”, described Ana Jacinto.

Over the last few years, there has been talk of several origins of this alleged crisis in restoration.

And they fit Ana Jacinto’s speech: increased costs (now even more so, especially in energy), low wages and modest conditions, inflation and lower purchasing power, post-pandemic debt, tax burden and bureaucracy, dependence on tourism and changes in consumption habits (more deliveries).

Those responsible for the sector have called for a reduction in taxes or more aids of the State, to be .

What crisis?

But Álvaro Santos Pereira says there is no crisis in restoration in Portugal.

The governor of Banco de Portugal guarantees: “In recent years, the restaurant sector grew a lot, thanks to the expansion of turismo and increase in consumption”.

In a set of publications in , accompanied by graphs, it shows official numbers from the National Statistics Institute: “Since 2019, the restoration grew 69% in nominal terms and 25% in real terms. This growth trend continued in 2025, albeit in a more moderate way. However, in 2025, turnover in restaurants increased by 2.9% in nominal terms, compared to 2024”.

Requests for help will have a justification: “The prices grew 6%, which led to a drop in business volume in real terms, mainly in the last quarter of 2025”.

But, at the same time, as products became more expensive, “the bills of Portuguese and foreigners in restaurants increased 2.7% in real terms”.

The former Economy Minister highlights that the ratio of credit due in restoration (2.1%) “remained at historically high levels lows.” Furthermore, the margins profit “they have remained relatively stable in recent years and at values ​​close to those observed in the pre-pandemic period” and employment is growing.

Data from Informa D&B also show that in 2025 created 4,991 companies, against “only” 1,307 bankruptcies.

“If we use e-invoice data for the restaurant sector, we see that even so, there was a net company creation in restoration in 2025, although smaller”, analyzes Álvaro Santos Pereira.

“The numbers are such evident that speak for themselves”, writes the governor of Banco de Portugal.