Deficit rises to €339 million in first quarter of 2026
Government expenditure rose while revenue dipped compared to last year
Malta registered a deficit of €339 million in the first quarter of this year, with debt rising to almost €11.5 billion, according to figures published by the National Statistics Office on Monday.
During the first three months of the year, government expenditure spiked to €2.3 billion, almost €300 million more than the same period last year.
This was partly driven by an increase in intermediate consumption, a measure which typically includes goods and services consumed throughout production processes, such as utilities, maintenance, raw materials and operational services.
These expenses rose by almost €100 million compared to the same period last year, the figures show.
However, government expenditure on its workers also increased sharply in the first three months of the year, rising to €644 million, €35 million more than the last quarter of 2025.
Meanwhile, the government received just over €2 billion in revenue, marginally higher than during the first three months of last year.
This included over €800 million in personal taxes collected, with a further €600 million in taxes on production and imports.
In total, government debt has now reached €11.45 billion, an increase of €549 million compared to the same period last year.
However, while debt has risen in absolute terms, it continues to dip in relation to Malta’s GDP, now standing at 45.9% of Malta’s economy.
EU rules state that Malta’s debt burden must remain beneath the 60% mark.
Throughout much of last year, Malta’s debt burden stood at roughly 46.5%, now dropping to beneath 46% for the first time in several years.