'GDP growth augurs well for economic sustainability' - Scicluna

Finance minister Edward Scicluna welcomed recent NSO data - which showed a GDP growth of 5.4% in real terms - and said that the numbers confirm that the Maltese economy is registering strong and broad-based growth. 

"This augurs well for the sustainability of our economic growth," Scicluna said, in a government press relase.

Official figures show that in the third quarter of 2015, the Maltese economy continued to register robust growth, with a GDP growth of 5.4 per cent in real terms and 8.0 per cent in nominal terms. The rate is the highest rate in the Eurozone, surpassing its average of 1.6 per cent. 

The figures show that the economic growth was broad based, evidenced by the increases registered in the professional, scientific and technical sector and administration and support activities (17.5 per cent) and the financial and insurance sector (11.7 per cent).

Other notable private sector increases were also recorded in real estate activities and wholesale and retail trade and accommodation and food service activities. The very strong growth in the service sectors more than compensated for the marginal decline in the manufacturing sector.

The increase in real GDP was underpinned by a considerable increase in investment, which increased by 21.5 per cent during the first nine months of 2015 and consumer expenditure increasing by around 4.6 per cent.

The growth in investment, the press release reads, is in line with government policy to reform pivotal sectors of our economy and to actively encourage the development of new growth sectors. Exports of goods and services also increased by 2.5 per cent in the first three quarters of 2015.

Growth in government expenditure during the first nine months was at 1.8 per cent while in the third quarter of this year, government expenditure declined by 5.4 per cent in real terms when compared with the same period of 2014.

Profits during the first three quarters of this year increased by 11.5 per cent or €300.9 million while salaries in the form of compensation of employees increased by 4.7 per cent or €124.6 million.