EU confirms Malta’s 2020 economic woes but forecasts economic rebound by 2022

The European Commission’s winter forecast  published today confirms that Malta’s economy contracted significantly last year.

The forecast estimates a contraction of around 9%  in 2020 due largely to the vast reduction in  air traffic, tourism and social activities which hit  the economy hard. However it goes on to project a robust growth of 5.4% by 2022, slightly higher than the 5.3% registered in 2019. This is higher than the predicted EU average of 3.9%. The gradual recovery of tourism in line with the roll-out of vaccination programmes across the continent will be key to this growth.