Malta

Great Britain formally acquired possession of Malta in 1814. The island staunchly supported the UK through both world wars and remained in the Commonwealth when it became independent in 1964. A decade later Malta became a republic. Since about the mid-1980s, the island has transformed itself into a freight transshipment point, a financial center, and a tourist destination. Malta became an EU member in May 2004 and began using the euro as currency in 2008.

Economical characteristics

 * Currency: Euro (ISO code: EUR)
 * Central bank discount rate: 1% (31 December 2009)
 * Commercial banks lending rate: 5.89% (31 December 2008)
 * Stock of money (M1): $4.639 billion (31 January 2008)
 * Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $8.771 billion (31 January 2008 est.)
 * is part of the Eurozone  since 2008

Links

 * Malta on Wikipedia
 * Central bank of Malta
 * BBC country profile