LEVERAGING BETTER OUR CURRENT ECONOMIC SUCCESS  ADDRESS BY DR MARIO VELLA GOVERNOR, CENTRAL BANK OF MALTA DELIVERED DURING THE IFS MALTA ANNUAL DINNER  01 DECEMBER 2017  Dear President and Members of the Committee of the Institute of Financial Services (IFS) Malta, distinguished guests, personally and on behalf of the Board of the Central Bank of Malta, I thank you for this annual traditional opportunity to address this distinguished audience and, through it, all stakeholders. Also my personal and institutional welcome to the representatives of overseas professional bodies who are with us tonight, the London Institute of Banking and Finance, the Global Association of Risk Professionals, and the European Banking and Financial Services Training Association. You evidently hold IFS Malta in high esteem. So do we. Mr President, we are pleased to hear about the many initiatives being undertaken in the area of financial services education and commend the Institute for its ongoing commitment to the professional development and up-skilling of financial services practitioners. This is definitely a positive contribution to the sustainability of our dynamic sector, and one we commit ourselves to support effectively. The Central Bank of Malta is a long-standing partner of the Institute. Rest assured that we will continue to offer our support wherever possible. Tonight’s event has become an important date in the calendar of key stakeholders in our country’s economy, particularly but not only in the financial services sector.
As the change in indirect taxes and administered prices has a direct effect on domestic inflation, their catching-up adjustment should be effected before the years during which they will be used as basis for evaluation of compliance with the Maastricht criteria – i.e. before 2008. From this perspective, earlier timing of harmonization of some excise taxes is a step to facilitate significantly the performance on the inflation criterion, as it would eliminate the proinflationary impact of an increase in these taxes in the years in which such evaluation will be made. In conclusion, I would like to sum up that, in the light of the rapid change in the structure of our economy, the stable macroeconomic policy pursued by the Government and the BNB, and the prospects for EU membership, the concerns, expressed in the leaflet for this Conference, of possible overheating of the economy and the risks this entails for its stability, seem rather exaggerated. The country’s external imbalance financed by capital inflows is more of a signal of stability, credibility and potential for development of our economy. Of course, the economic policy makers are not and may not be complaisant. The challenges Bulgarian economy is facing are well recognized, and there is the will to take all the necessary measures to preserve the stability and growth in the economy. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention. BIS Review 22/2006  3