Malta registers a trade deficit of €301.1 million in September

For the month of September, provisional figures for registered trade in goods in Malta are showing a deficit of €301.1 million, as opposed to a deficit of €270.8 million in the corresponding month of 2023.

Figures were published by the National Statistics Office (NSO) indicated that imports amounted to €750.4 million, while exports totalled €449.3 million, representing increases in both imports and exports of €91.3 million and €60.9 million, respectively, over the same month of the previous year.

The increase in imports was mainly due to Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€120.3 million), and Miscellaneous transactions and commodities (€12.1 million), partly offset by decreases in food (€24.6 million), and Machinery and transport equipment (€18.6 million).

On the exports side, the main increases were registered in miscellaneous manufactured articles (€44.4 million), and mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€43.8 million), partly offset by a decrease in machinery and transport equipment (€20.7 million).

Trade in Goods between January and September 2024

During the first nine months of the year, the deficit narrowed by €100.5 million when compared to the corresponding period of 2023, reaching €3.29 billion.

Imports stood at €6.92 million whereas exports reached €3.63 billion, representing increases of €238 million and €385.5 million, respectively.

Higher imports were mainly recorded in Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€542.1 million), partly offset by a decrease in Machinery and transport equipment (€218.7 million). On the exports side, the main increase was registered in Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€327.9 million).

Goods were imported mainly from the European Union (56.4 per cent) and Asia (21.3 per cent). Similarly, exports were mostly directed to the European Union (35.7 per cent) and Asia (11.3 per cent). The highest increase in imports was recorded from Italy (€167.6 million), while imports from Germany registered the largest drop (€242.2 million). Exports to the United States of America registered the highest increase (€139.7 million), while those to Germany experienced the largest decrease (€65.0 million).

In September, the deficit of trade in goods excluding specific chapters amounted to €139.5 million, compared to a deficit of €183.9 million recorded in the same month of 2023. Imports and exports amounted to €428.6 million and €289.1 million, respectively, thus representing a decrease of five per cent in imports and an increase of 8.2 per cent in exports over the corresponding month of the previous year.

During the first nine months of 2024, the deficit of trade in goods excluding specific chapters narrowed by €0.5 million when compared to the same period of 2023, reaching €1.9 billion. Both imports and exports decreased by 0.3 per cent and 0.5 per cent, amounting to €4.1 billion and €2.1 billion, respectively.