Finance Minister Edward Scicluna this morning warned that economic booms contained the seeds of their own destruction.

Addressing a Finance Malta conference, Prof. Scicluna stressed the importance that none of Malta’s economic sectors should be allowed to overheat and reach overcapacity.

He said Malta was in a very fortunate position with its strong economic growth when compared to other EU countries.

Malta’s healthy growth, he said, needed to be managed to stop it developing into an unsustainable boom.

He warned against the “supermarket” mentality in the construction industry, whereby developers tried to compete with large-scale projects irrespective of the demand.

The Finance Minister said there was a lack of information when it came to high-rise buildings, which was where the Planning Authority had to come in.

The government, he said, had managed to control expenditure while boosting revenue without inducing any shocks to the economy.