Why Malta?

• The legislative framework is in line with the main EU directives – It is sufficiently flexible and versatile to relate to different legal systems;

• Paramount anti-money laundering standards have nurtured financial services sector;

• Excellent economic track record with sustained growth, economic and political stability;

• Boasts an inflation rate and long-term interest rate lower than EU average and in April 2005 Malta joined the ERM II mechanism and has adopted the Euro Currency on 1st January 2008.

• A modern and competitive tax regime providing an excellent base for setting up tax efficient structures – Highest individual tax rate is of 35%;

• Business Environment - a product-driven economy, established international banking and insurance services;

• High Standard of living – good quality of life, low criminal rate, excellent health services and offers diverse entertainment and sport facilities;

• Social Capital is the prime resource in Malta, having availability of more than 6% of the Maltese population who are graduate and post graduate labour force;

• Open market economy with free movement of capital and labour;

• Excellent country sovereign credit rating – ‘A’ rating with a stable outlook by ‘Standard and Poor’ – indicating a high to medium quality investment.

Nationality: Maltese
Capital City: Valletta
Population: 410,290 (2007 estimate)
Population Growth Rate: 0.6% (2007 estimate)
Local Time: GMT+1 (GMT+2 from last Sunday in March to last Sunday in October)

Official Languages: Maltese, English
Other Spoken Languages: Italian, French, German, Spanish.

Economic Scenario

Gross Domestic Product (2007) €5.4 billion

Gross Domestic Product (2006) €5.1 billion

% annual increase of GDP (2007) 6.1%

GDP per capita 2007 €13,139

Percentage contribution to Gross Value Added (at basic prices) as at 2007

Inflation Rate: 3.75% (as at end May 2008)

Exchange Rate: Malta Currency is the Euro as from 1st January 2008. For information purposes only, the Maltese Lira (MTL) exchange rate is 0.4293 EUR/MTL;

Long-term interest rate: 4.4% (2007 estimate)

No. of tourist departures: 1,243,510 (2007 estimate incl. sea passengers)

Malta Rankings

Malta's banks 10th soundest in the world.
Source: The Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009 - World Economic Forum

Well advanced in information society, with many benchmarking indicators significantly above the EU average
Source: i2010 mid-term review 2008, Preparing Europe's Digital Future - European Commission

15th in Euro Consumer Heart Index - ranking of European cardiovascular healthcare systems
Source: Health Consumer Powerhouse AB 2008

27th "most networked economy in the world"
 Source: The Global Information Technology Report 2007-2008 - World Economic Forum

Identified as one of the top three financial centres worldwide likely to increase in importance over the next 2 to 3 years
Source: Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) - 3 March 2008

Ranked 6th in inward FDI growth
Source: World Investment Report 2007

Government of Malta ranked 2nd most successful government in the world in promoting ICT
 Source: The Global Information Technology Report 2006-2007 - World Economic Forum

Malta's Grand Harbour has become the 7th most visited port in Europe by the cruise industry (2005)
Source: European Cruise Council Study 2007

Some Economic and General Data on Malta

Leading export market: European Union

Exports to France (2006):   €70,227k

Exports to Germany (2006): €59,768k

Exports to UK (2006): €43,502k

Exports to Italy (2006): €17,047k
*Source: Malta in Figures 2008 - National Statistics Office of Malta
Exports
Europe                                                  1,133,474
of which:
European Union                                     1,106,180
of which:
United Kingdom                                     221,818
Euro Area                                              798,317
EFTA Countries                                     13,637
Other European Countries                       13,657
Africa                                                    121,300
America                                                279,721
Asia                                                      669,411
Australia and Oceania                            6,751
Ships and aircraft stores, and bunkers     26,461
Total                                                    2,237,118

Telephone System:
• General Assessment: Automatic digital system satisfies normal requirements;
• Domestic: Digital Network over fiber and copper local loops;
• International: 2 submarine cables and a microwave bridge station.

International Tel. Code: + 356

Internet Code: .mt

Internet Connectivity Distribution (2006): 43,536 Broadband; 48,294 Narrowband subscriptions.

ISP’s: Broadband 16 (2004)