The European Commission (Commission), in a report issued today on all member stated, cleared Malta’s 2017 budget, however it warned that house prices are expected to go up due to an increase in demand over the coming years.

The Commission also noted that government debt continued to decrease, and that labour market conditions also continued to be favourable.

While Malta maintained its current account surplus, it has decreased slightly in 2015. This shows a persistent increase in import intensive investment.

The report classified the budget as ‘broadly compliant’, as well as Latvia, Ireland and Austria.