Malta registers largest decrease in inflation in almost two years

Malta’s inflation rate has continue its downward trajectory, registering the largest decrease in almost two years as month-on-month inflation remained flat at zero per cent, indicating no change in prices between October and November 2022.

Last month, annual inflation was down was the first time since February 2021, going from 7.52 per cent in September to 7.47 per cent in October.

This continued to decrease at a fast rate in November, with the National Statistics Office’s latest release reporting the month’s annual inflation rate at 7.12 per cent.

Whereas the reduction during October 2022 was largely a result of a sharp decrease in transport costs, the picture is a more balanced one in November, with only beverages registering a month-on-month change in price of over two per cent (2.01 per cent) – presumably due to the introduction of the beverage container refund scheme during the month.

On the other hand, whereas only transport (Oct: -4.44 per cent) and other recreational activities and services (Oct: -0.45 per cent) registered a price drop during October, more categories saw a decrease in prices.

These included household appliances and utensils (-0.09 per cent), transport (-1.39 per cent), communication (-0.1 per cent), sports-related equipment (-0.48 per cent), other recreational activities and services (-1.52 per cent), and insurance and financial services (-0.18 per cent).

Price changes

The highest annual inflation rates in November 2022 were registered in housing (19.01 per cent) and food (12.52 per cent). On the other hand, the lowest annual inflation rates were registered in water, electricity, gas and fuels (zero per cent) and clothing and footwear (1.27 per cent).