Malta registers first fiscal surplus in 16 years

Eurostat figures show that Maltese government registered a surplus of €11 million in the second quarter of this year, compared to a €38 million deficit registered last year 

Malta has registered a surplus in public finances in the second quarter of this year, the first fiscal surplus since the turn of the millennium.

Eurostat figures show that the government registered a surplus of €11 million in the second quarter of the year, compared to a €38 million deficit in the same period last year. During this period, government expenditure declined by 3.3% while revenue increased by 2.2%.

In a statement, the government noted that the previous PN administration had registered a €88 million deficit in 2012, the last year of its legislature. Moreover, the government netted €382 million through income tax revenue, compared to €242 in 2012, and this despite recent income tax cuts.

“Strengthening public finances is reducing the burden of the national debt,” the government said. “Indeed, credit rating agencies are predicting that the current debt burden that was brought about by three Nationalist administrations will be gone entirely by the end of this legislature.”