PwC Malta’s latest CEO Confidence Tracker suggests a dip in current business sentiment, whilst outlook remains largely stable

PwC Malta has recently released the results of its latest CEO Confidence Tracker, aimed at tracking the business sentiment of Malta’s top CEOs in a context of an increasingly volatile and challenging economic environment. The tracker, in which around 40 CEOs participated, was conducted in the second quarter of 2024 and provides valuable insights into the current and future outlook of the Maltese economy as perceived by its leading businesses.

This edition marks the highest level of CEOs (38%) who reported a drop in the level of business when compared to the previous quarter, since the first edition of the confidence tracker was issued by PwC Malta in 2021. The feedback for this edition was collated during Q2 of 2024, in a landscape dominated by the prevailing inflationary pressures affecting both consumers and industry, and in the midst of the European Parliament election campaign.

The business level trends can be interpreted further in light of the most recent economic forecast issued by the Central Bank of Malta, where the country’s gross domestic product is expected to grow by 4.3% in 2024. Growth is then projected to ease to 3.5% in 2025, a downward revision in 2024 and 2025, when compared to the Bank’s previous projections. Meanwhile the Economic Sentiment Indicator for Malta as tracked by the European Commission also reports a decline in business sentiment over the first six months of 2024.

Despite the observed dip in current business sentiment, the PwC Confidence Tracker indicates that the outlook for the next six months is largely in line with previous trackers, with 54% of CEOs indicating a stable outlook, implying an element of resilience within the Maltese economy.

The full results of the CEO Confidence Tracker can be viewed through the link here.