The National Statistics Office has recently published a range of data for the whole of 2012. More specifically, it published data on the gross domestic product, on international trade and on inflation. The last data on employment is the Labour Force Survey of the third quarter.

What I am seeking to do in this week’s contribution is to a look at the bigger picture in our economy. Comments are made about the business and consumer sentiment being low and about anecdotal evidence that certain segments of the economy are not doing well. However, what does the overall picture look like?

I would like to use the weather analogy. If on a winter day we have some bright sunshine, a blue sky with some scattered clouds and a temperature of around 18°C, would one describe it as a cold day? Or would one describe it as a warm day with fair weather in spite of the fact that it is winter?

We would all tend to look at the bigger picture. We are facing a very similar situation in terms of our economy. There is no doubt that beyond our shores the conditions are very bad (we have experienced the Shakespearian “winter of discontent” with sovereign debt problems and weakening economies).

In Malta we have had our share of problems to sort out but it has been a rather fair winter from an economic perspective. We are not enjoying a “glorious summer” (again using a Shakespearian phrase) and it is important to recognise this; hence the need to look at the bigger picture.

What emerges is a situation that proves once more the resilience of our economy in the face of international economic turmoil. This resilience has been built over the years and can be weakened if the wrong decisions are taken.

One critical indicator is international trade in goods. This is an important indicator for two main reasons.

In Malta economic growth can only be sustained if there is growth in our exports and an improved balance of trade indicates that the competitiveness of businesses operating in Malta is improving. The published data does not provide information on trade in services − a sector in which Malta normally performs well. However, the data on the trade in goods (and therefore manufacturing) shows a stable position. The overall negative balance of trade is marginally higher but if one eliminates the balance on the trade of fuels (and we all know that we import all our fuel needs), we get a situation that is just slightly better than last year’s.

The annual inflation rate in December 2011 was 1.3 per cent. This is lowest rate registered since April 2010. If one takes a longer term view and measures the rate of inflation of a three-year period, what emerges is that we have had 4.9 per cent inflation over a span of 36 months. Such a rate is higher than that in a number of EU countries as well as non-EU countries which compete with us for investment, export markets and tourism. Therefore, if our businesses maintain their productivity levels, it is highly unlikely that our inflation rate will be a cause of loss of competitiveness.

The data on employment also indicates an acceptable level of competitiveness of our businesses. The percentage of persons aged over 15 years who are in employment is 48 per cent. The employment rate in September 2011 was 58.1 per cent, up from 56.7 per cent 12 months before. The unemployment rate is down to 6.2 per cent, from 6.8 per cent the previous year. Average gross annual salary was over €15,000, compared to €14,400 the year before.

The last set of data which reflects the performance of the whole economy relates to the gross domestic product. We did have a negative blip in the fourth quarter of 2011, but the GDP increased by 2.1 per cent in real terms for the whole of 2011.

An increase in value added was registered across all sectors of the economy with the exception of the construction sector (some people would actually welcome a drop in construction activity) and the energy sector (reflecting the losses of Enemalta Corporation). Thus growth was not confined to a small minority.

The bigger picture shows that our balance of trade, our inflation rate and our unemployment rate are under control as is the economy as a whole, as reflected through the gross domestic product. It has not been an easy time and we can all point to situations where, as individuals, we have had to accept the need to cut expenditure to sustain our lifestyle. On the other hand, when one looks at the bigger picture we should feel proud with what we have achieved as a country.