Malta Central Bank: Business Conditions Favorable

Malta’s economic activity remained above-average in March, with buoyant labor market conditions and expansions in industrial production and tourism, the Malta Central Bank said in an economic update, MNA reported.

Indexes related to business conditions and economic sentiment both dipped marginally when compared to the previous month, though they remained substantially above average.

The central bank found that price pressures moderated slightly in February, with the annual rate of inflation based falling to 1.2%. Malta’s nominal harmonized competitiveness indicator dropped by 0.7% in February when compared with a year earlier—the first drop since 2015—with central bank analysts saying this suggested an improvement in Malta’s international competitiveness. In February, the annual rate of change of retail sales turned negative, the bank found.  

Maltese residents’ deposits rose by 11.7% when compared with the same month of 2016, while credit to residents increased by 2.4%.

During the second month of 2017, the Consolidated Fund balance registered a surplus of €46.5 million ($49.82 million), €24.9 million more than a year earlier.