A Southern European island nation in the Mediterranean Sea near Italy, Tunisia and Libya, the Republic of Malta shipped US$3.27 billion worth of exported products around the globe in 2022.

That dollar amount reflects a flatlining 2.3% increase compared to $3.2 billion five years earlier in 2018.

Year over year, Maltese export sales gained 6.5% from $3.1 billion during 2021.

Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, Malta’s official currency is the euro. The euro depreciated by -12.1% against the US dollar since 2018 and diluted by -12.3% from 2021 to 2022. The weaker European Union currency in 2022 made Malta’s exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.

Malta’s top 5 most valuable exported products are electronic integrated circuits or microassemblies, medication mixes in dosage, unused stamps, fish fillets and pieces, then processed petroleum oils. Combined, that quintet of major Maltese exports accounts for over half (55.6%) of Malta’s overall product sales on international markets. Such a high percentage suggests a highly concentrated portfolio of exported goods.

Malta’s Best Exports Customers

The latest available country-specific data shows that almost two-thirds (65.9%) of products exported from Malta was bought by importers in: Germany (16.8% of the Maltese total), Japan (7.7%), France (7.5%), Italy (5.6%), Singapore (5.26%), United Kingdom (5.25%), Hong Kong (5.23%), United States of America (4.4%), South Korea (2.5%), Spain (2.1%), mainland China (1.9%) and Poland (1.8%).

From a continental perspective, 52.5% of Malta’s exports by value was delivered to fellow European countries while 32% was sold to importers in Asia. Malta shipped another 7.8% worth of goods to Africa.

Smaller percentages went to buyers in North America (5.6%), Latin America (1.5%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania (0.5%) mostly Australia and New Zealand.

Given Malta’s population of 521,000 people, its total $3.27 billion in 2022 exports translates to roughly $6,300 for every resident in the small island country. That dollar metric exceeds the average $6,200 per capital one year earlier during 2021.

Malta’s Top 10 Exports

The following export product groups garnered the highest dollar value in Maltese global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Malta.

1. Electrical machinery, equipment: US$1.1 billion (32.9% of total exports)
2. Pharmaceuticals: $381.8 million (11.7%)
3. Books, newspapers, pictures: $298 million (9.1%)
4. Fish: $285.3 million (8.7%)
5. Mineral fuels including oil: $160.5 million (4.9%)
6. Machinery including computers: $139.9 million (4.3%)
7. Toys, games: $131.5 million (4%)
8. Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $102.1 million (3.1%)
9. Organic chemicals: $94.5 million (2.9%)
10. Plastics, plastic articles: $81.5 million (2.5%)

Malta’s top 10 exports accounted for 84.2% of the overall value of its global shipments.

Electrical machinery and equipment was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 47.8% from 2021 to 2022.

In second place for improving export sales was fish from Norway via a 42.4% advance.

Malta’s shipments of machinery including computers posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 6.6%.

The leading decliner among Malta’s top 10 export categories was mineral fuels including oil, pulled down by a -28.4% year-over-year drop. The biggest loser was refined petroleum oils.

The above listed product categories are at the four-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level.

Drilling down to the more detailed HTS codes, Malta’s most valuable export products are electronic integrated circuits or microassemblies (24.8% of the Maltese total), medication mixes in dosage (11.4%), unused stamps (8%), fish fillets and pieces (6.5%), then processed petroleum oils (4.9%), lower-voltage switches or fuses (4.3%), models, puzzles and miscellaneous toys (4%), items made from vulcanized rubber (2.2%), miscellaneous food preparations (2%), then aircraft or spacecraft parts (1.8%).

Products Generating Malta’s Largest Trade Surpluses

The following types of Maltese product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.

In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.

1. Books, newspapers, pictures: US$279.8 million (Down by -6.4% since 2021)
2. Electrical machinery, equipment: $123.7 million (Reversing a -$40.3 million deficit)
3. Fish: $115.5 million (Up by 52.2%)
4. Toys, games: $85 million (Down by -31.3%)
5. Rubber, rubber articles: $49.3 million (Up by 23.6%)
6. Knit or crochet fabric: $31 million (Down by -2.2%)
7. Miscellaneous food preparations: $19 million (Up by 14.1%)
8. Organic chemicals: $14.3 million (Down by -52.6%)
9. Pharmaceuticals: $8.1 million (Down by -91.8%)
10. Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $5.3 million (Down by -8.9%)

Malta has highly positive net exports in the international trade of printed books, newspapers and pictures. In turn, these cashflows indicate Malta’s strong competitive advantages under the books, newspapers and pictures category.

Products Causing Malta’s Worst Trade Deficits

Malta incurred an overall -US$5.3 billion trade deficit during 2022, swelling by 30% from -$4.1 billion in 2021.

Below are exports from Malta that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Malta’s goods trail Maltese importer spending on foreign products.

1. Mineral fuels including oil: -US$1.5 billion (Up by 37% since 2021)
2. Aircraft, spacecraft: -$1.3 billion (Up by 58.9%)
3. Ships, boats: -$597.2 million (Up by 4.6%)
4. Machinery including computers: -$339.6 million (Up by 17.9%)
5. Vehicles: -$262.8 million (Up by 22.2%)
6. Plastics, plastic articles: -$159.4 million (Up by 29.1%)
7. Paper, paper items: -$127.5 million (Down by -2.9%)
8. Furniture, bedding, lighting, signs, prefabricated buildings: -$115.3 million (Up by 14.0%)
9. Beverages, spirits, vinegar: -$97.8 million (Up by 24.2%)
10. Articles of iron or steel: -$94.2 million (Up by 18.9%)

Malta has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for refined petroleum oils, electrical energy, and petroleum gases under the mineral fuels-related product category.

Malta’s Export Companies

Given how small Malta is, it should come as no surprise that not one Maltese corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.

Wikipedia does list Maltese companies that engage in international trade. Selected examples are shown below:

• Air Malta plc (airliner)
• Emmanuel Delicata (wine)
• Simonds Farsons Cisk plc (beverages including beer)

 
In macroeconomic terms, Malta’s total exported goods represent 10.8% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($30.3 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 10.8% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 12.5% for 2021. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Malta’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.

Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Malta’s unemployment rate averaged 2.925% for 2022, down from an average 3.408% in 2021 according to the International Monetary Fund.

Malta’s capital city is Valletta, the smallest national capital in the European Union.

See also Malta’s Top Trading Partners, Germany’s Top Trading Partners, Italy’s Top Trading Partners, France’s Top Trading Partners and Japan’s Top Trading Partners

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Europe: Malta. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on June 18, 2023

International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average)

. Accessed on June 18, 2023

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on June 18, 2023

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Wikipedia, List of Companies of Malta. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Wikipedia, Malta. Accessed on June 18, 2023

Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on June 18, 2023