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In the beginning of 2012, Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners, dubbed the situation of Greece and Portugal "hopeless". In support of his verdict, Darda cited high debt loads and poor prospects for growth in the two countries. The hopelessness of Portugal, from the perspective of the economists, has to do with what they call "structural problems": a small internal market, the absence of natural resources, bureaucracy that suffocates innovation, an insufficiently...