Malta's economy to reach pre-pandemic levels by second half of 2022 – Fitch
Fitch has confirmed Malta’s ‘A+’ long-term rating, with the credit rating agency also maintaining its stable outlook for the country. The US-based agency believes it will take until the second half of next year for Malta’s GDP to return to pre-pandemic levels. FATF greylisting has “not yet materially impacted the Maltese economy,” Fitch noted, though that could change if the country were to remain on the list for a prolonged period of time. Fitch expects the country to rebound to growth and stabilise its level of debt well before it hits the 2011 high of 70 per cent of GDP, but also warned that an extension of the COVID-19 pandemic would hurt the tourism-focused economy. Fitch upgraded its projections for 2021 GDP growth to 5.7%, up from 4.7% in its previous report. However, it noted that growth lagged at just 0.5% in the second quarter of this year, as private and public consumption as well as net exports decreased slightly, more than offsetting a strong increase in investment. Growth is then expected to ramp up to 6.1% in 2022, as it matches pent-up demand and the tourism sector continues its recovery. Fitch noted that Malta’s high vaccination rate had allowed authorities to...