Exports down 31 per cent

Exports from Malta fell by 31 per cent in the first three months of this year over 2008, according to the latest statistics published in Brussels.

Malta's drop in exports turns out to be among the sharpest in the 27 EU member states, with only Finland registering a higher drop (-35 per cent).

Between January and March, Malta exported €300 million worth of products against the half-a-billion euro exported in the same period of 2008.

The general EU statistics depict a gloomy picture of trade in the EU in the first quarter of this year, with all the 27 member states seeing their exports slide compared to last year.

Apart from Finland and Malta, other significant drops in exports were registered by Sweden (-30 per cent), Portugal (-28 per cent), Bulgaria (-27 per cent) and Hungary and Latvia (-26 per cent). Europe's two big exporters, Germany and France, also suffered a major drop in their exports, registering drops of -21 and -22 per cent respectively.

Imports saw a reversal of roles with Malta seeing the least drop. In fact, while Malta imported 19 per cent less than in the same period of last year, other member states saw sharper decreases with Lithuania (-42 per cent), Latvia (-36) and Romania (-35 per cent) topping the list.