A new survey conducted by the Malta Business Bureau is expected to reveal that Maltese businesses consider the main advantage of European Union membership to be the elimination of exchange rate risks followed by the access to EU funding.

The survey was conducted among the members of the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association - the parent organisations of the Malta Business Bureau. The full results of the survey will be announced tomorrow morning during a business breakfast meeting at the Hotel Phoenicia. The general manager of Misco, Anthony Carabott, will deliver a detailed presentation to business representatives as well as to journalists on the findings of the survey.

The main objective of the survey is to study the impact of EU membership on local businesses.

The survey, entitled The Effect of EU Membership on Maltese Business, shows that 28 per cent of respondents believe that the main advantage of EU membership for their business has been the elimination of the exchange rate risks. Over 80 per cent of the respondents believe the euro was helping their business in the present international economic climate.

On the other hand, 51 per cent of businesses stated that the cost involved to adhere to EU membership was the main disadvantage that their business incurred as a result of EU membership.

The survey results tomorrow will include the business sector's views on whether they believe EU membership has been beneficial to their business, whether EU membership has helped local businesses gain access to the common market as well as whether the businesses participating in the survey believe they are performing well in the current economic climate.

During the breakfast meeting, the results of the survey will be followed by a panel discussion by top local business leaders. The discussion will be moderated by Joseph F. X. Zahra, and the audience will be addressed by Malta Business Bureau president George Micallef, Helga Ellul, president of the Malta Chamber of Commerce Enterprise and Industry and Winston Zahra, vice-president of the MHRA.

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