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PROFILE: Malta

A Few Tips for doing Business in Malta

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  • Environment is Malta's most important resource. The country has many national reserves and areas of ecological importance.

  • Punctuality is important.

  • Small or symbolic gifts from your home country are appreciated.

  • Dress conservatively.

  • Fighting corruption is very important in Malta.

  • Despite its small size, Malta has succeeded in re-inventing itself as one of Europe's most dynamic and innovative locations for doing business.

  • Malta has two official languages, Maltese and English. Maltese is a Semitic language, an ancient derivative of Arabic with influences of Italian. It is the only Semitic language written in the Latin alphabet.

 

Brief History

  • Malta's civilization dates back thousands of years.  Its islands have been a strategic site for many countries including Phoenicia, Carthage, Greece, the Roman Empire, Moors, Norman's, etc. 

  • It was a British colony from 1814 to 1964 when it became independent.

  • Location: As an island nation, it is in southern Europe in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily

 

General Information

  • Government: Parliamentary republic

  • Capital City: Valletta

  • Literacy Rate: 94.4%

  • Size: Slightly less than twice the size of Washington D.C.

  • Population: 460,891 (July,2020 est.)

  • Population Growth: 0.75% (2021 est.)

  • Population Distribution: Most of the people live on the eastern half of Malta, the largest of the 3 inhabited islands

 

Economy

  • It is a free-market economy and the smallest economy in the Euro-Zone.  Malta relies on trade in both goods and services, primarily with other European nations.  It produces less than a quarter of its food and has limited water supplies.  It is dependent on foreign trade, manufacturing and tourism.  It joined the EU in 2004 and adopted the Euro in 2009.

  • Unemployment Rate: 4.09% (2020)

  • Currency Exchange Rate: 1 US Dollar = 0.87 Euros (1/12/22)

  • GDP: $14.986 B

  • GDP Growth Rate: 4.94% (2019 est.)

  • Labor Force: 223,000 (2019 est.)

  • Labor Force Breakdown:  Agriculture - 1.6%, Industry - 20.7%, Services - 77.7%

  • Major Industries:  Tourism, manufacturing, financial services, information communications and technology

 

International Trade

Total Product Exports: $2.67B (2020)

 

Major Product Exports (2020)

  • Electrical machinery, equipment - 25.8%

  • Pharmaceuticals - 15.3%

  • Books, newspapers, pictures - 11%

  • Fish - 6.25%

  • Toys, games - 6.1%

 

Major Product Export Partners (2020)

  • Germany - 17%

  • France - 9.2%

  • Italy - 7.0%

  • Hong Kong - 5.8%

  • Singapore - 5.6%

  • Japan - 5.55

 

Total Product Imports (2020)

$5.2B

 

Major Product Imports (2020)

  • Mineral Fuels & Oils - 17.4%

  • Aircraft, spacecraft, parts - 11.7%

  • Electrical machinery & equipment - 11.0%

  • Pharmaceutical products - 6.1%

  • Machinery - 6%

  • Ships, boats, fleeting structures - 4.2%

 

Major Import Partners (2020)

  • Italy - 20.3%

  • UK - 8.9%

  • China - 7.95

  • France - 7.1%

  • Germany - 6.6%

  • Spain - 5.1%

  • Luxembourg - 4.4%

 

English Language Online News Sites

 

Sampling of Companies

 

National Holidays 2022

  • January 1 - New Year`s Day

  • February 10 - Feast of St. Paul`s Shipwreck

  • March 19 - Feast of St. Joseph

  • March 31 - Freedom Day

  • April 15 - Good Friday

  • May 1 - Worker`s Day

  • June 7 - Sette Giugno

  • June 29 - Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul

  • August 15 - Assumption Day

  • September 8 - Feast of Our Lady of Victories

  • September 21 - Independence Day

  • December 8 - Feast of Immaculate Conception

  • December 13 - Republic Day

  • December 25 - Christmas Day

 

By Paul Mastilak

InterMark3, Inc.

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