Performance of the Economy

The weekly cost of living adjustment for 2023 will be €9.90 per week. This adjustment will be granted in full to employees, anyone on social benefits, pensioners and students (pro rata).  Pensioners will be granted a cost of living adjustment of €12.50 per week.

Tax revenue for 2022 is expected to amount to €5.4bn, compared with the original estimate of €5.1bn.

The deficit for 2022 is expected to amount to around 5.8% of GDP, declining to 5.5% by 2023.

The unemployment rate is expected to stand at 3.1% in 2022.  In August 2022, the unemployment rate stood at 2.9%, which remains below the EU average rate of 6% in the same month.

Employment in Malta is expected to grow by 4% in 2022. Total number of persons in employment until the second quarter of 2022 was estimated at 280k, 4.9% higher when compared to the previous year.

The at-risk-of-poverty-or-social exclusion rate expressed as a percentage of the total population stood at 20.3%, up from 19.9%.

The 12-month moving average rate of inflation as at September 2022 stood at 4.8% compared to 0.3% as at the same period last year. For 2022, the inflation rate is expected to be 5.7%, driven by food and services prices. Meanwhile, inflation is expected to decrease to 3.7% in 2023. In order to counteract rising energy and cereal prices, the Government has announced the allocation of a €600m fund.

Government debt is expected to reach 57% of GDP by the end of 2022 and set to increase to 59.1% in 2023.

GDP is set to grow by 6.0% in real terms over its level in 2021, amounting to €16.4bn. This growth is expected to be driven by domestic demand and net exports and is expected to grow by 3.5% in 2023.

Inbound tourists are expected to reach 2.1m in 2022. Arrivals up to August 2022 amounted to 1.5m, representing 81% of the amount over the same period in record-year 2019.

The average equivalised household income for 2021 stood at €19.9k, up from €19k in 2020.