House prices rose by 5.7 per cent in Malta compared with a year ago, above the 4.3 per cent average for the eurozone and the EU.

However, the increase was not the highest registered, with Slovenia at the top of the ranking (+13.4%), followed by Ireland (+12.6%), Portugal (+11.2%) and Hungary (10.4%).

House prices actually fell in two countries: Sweden (-1.7%) and Italy (-0.2%).

Eurostat also reported on Friday that compared with the first quarter of 2018, house prices rose by 3.2 per cent in Malta in the second quarter of 2018, and 1.4 per cent in both the euro area and the EU.

This study comes just weeks after the Knight Frank LLP Global House Price Index showed that Malta had edged out Hong Kong to take the prize for the territory or country with the highest residential price gains in the June quarter.

Based on figures taken from the Central Bank of Malta, home prices on the island were reported to have risen by some 17 per cent in the three months to June when compared to the same period in 2017.

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