Portugal should consider rescue, says Roubini

LISBON: Economist Nouriel Roubini says Portugal should consider asking for a bailout before its financial plight worsens. Roubini, a professor of economics at New York University who predicted the financial crisis, told daily paper Diario Economico it is “increasingly likely” Portugal will require international assistance.

He said in an interview published Monday there are ample funds to shore up Portugal, one of the Euro zone’s smaller countries which contributes less than 2% to the 16-nation bloc’s gross domestic product.

Roubini said Portugal is approaching “a critical point” due to its high debt load and weak growth. But he said neighboring Spain, Europe’s fourth-largest economy, is “too big to bail out.”