97 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.8% (1997 est.)

Labor force: 148,085 (September 1996)

Labor force--by occupation: public services 34%, other services
32%, manufacturing and construction 22%, agriculture 2% (1996)

Unemployment rate: 5% (1997)

Budget:
revenues: $1.32 billion
expenditures: $1.76 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998 est.)

Industries: tourism; electronics, ship building and repair,
construction; food and beverages, textiles, footwear, clothing,
tobacco

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity--production: 1.425 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 1.425 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 0 kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 0 kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: potatoes, cauliflowers, grapes, wheat,
barley, tomatoes, citrus, cut flowers, green peppers; pork, milk,
poultry, eggs

Exports: $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 1997)

Exports--commodities: machinery and transport equipment,
manufactures (1996)

Exports--partners: France 18%, US 15%, Germany 15%, UK 8%, Italy
6% (1997)

Imports: $2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1997)

Imports--commodities: machinery and transport equipment,
manufactured goods; food, drink, and tobacco

Imports--partners: Italy 20%, France 16%, UK 15%, Germany 10%, US
8% (1997)

Debt--external: $130 million (1997)

Economic aid--recipient: $NA

Currency: 1 Maltese lira (LM) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: Maltese liri (LM) per US$1--0.3797 (January 1999),
0.3884 (1998), 0.3857 (1997), 0.3604 (1996), 0.3529 (1995), 0.3776
(1994)

Fiscal year: 1 April--31 March

Communications

Telephones: 191,876 (1992 est.)

Telephone system: automatic system satisfies normal requirements
domestic: submarine cable and microwave radio relay between islands
international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station--1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 4, shortwave 0

Radios: 189,000 (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997)

Televisions: 300,000 (1996 est.)

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: 1,582 km
paved: 1,471 km
unpaved: 111 km (1993 est.)

Ports and harbors: Marsaxlokk,