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9 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 JANUARY 2023 NEWS and pomp. Heads of state will be invit- ed and the cost of the ceremony will be borne by the British state. The UK will observe a bank hol- iday on M o n d a y 8 May to mark the occasion. 18. Tosca at Manoel Theatre Teatru Manoel and Valletta Cultural Agency will present Tosca by Giaco- mo Puccini in March. World famous tenor Josè Cura will direct the opera and feature in it as Cavaradossi. To- sca will be played by Tanya Ivanova and Carlos Almaguer will feature as Scarpia. The opening night will be on 5 March with other performances on the 8, 10 and 12 March. 19. A Maltese song at Eurovision Liverpool will host the Eurovision song contest instead of Ukraine, which is deemed unsafe because of the war. The final will be held on 13 May. Malta's selection will take place on 11 February. 40 songs have been shortlisted for the quarter finals, including five that are in Maltese. Could this be the year Malta returns to the Eurovision with a Maltese-lan- guage song? 20. Catholic synod pits conservatives against liberals The Catholic church's first of two synods dealing with controversial issues such as holy communion for divorced and remarried Catholics and blessing of same-sex couples will be held in October. The meeting at the Vatican will be the culmination of a global consultation process led by Cardinal Mario Grech that has pit conservatives against Pope Francis's liberal views. pone investment decisions, which in turn affects unemployment. [...] In terms of prices Malta is more competitive given that the government is absorbing the energy inflation. I think that Malta will avoid a recession due to its competitiveness and its agile economy which adjusts easily to each and every global circumstance. An im- portant step in 2023 is to make sure that business sentiment remains high, and consumer confidence too, and we take the opportunity to transit to greener practices. On a separate note, we must promote the circular economy further to cut on unnecessary costs in times of abnor- mal inflation. The principle of collect- ing plastic is a great step in the right direction. However, the beverage con- tainer deposit must be efficiently and effectively collected to avoid additional increases in inflation expectations and unnecessary inflationary pressures. 5. Business readiness Fabri: The economic situation is based on high levels of economic vol- atility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA). Businesses need to shift this situation by creating a vision, create the means to have more clarity and a better understanding of how the current situation is affecting them, and become more agile. It is easier said than done given the complexity characteriz- ing the economy at present. However, with the right inspiration and people on board, it is not impossible. Future competitiveness depends on businesses who manage to take advantage of the present. Foreseeing the future has become dif- ficult with the VUCA situation. Stake- holders should thus proactive and thus prepare a reaction for the different sce- narios that could take place. 6. Approval of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards by the European Parliament Attard: These reporting standards are the equivalent of the accounting IFRS's, and focus on standardising sus- tainability reporting under the upcom- ing Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, which starts impacting some of the largest local companies for fi- nancial year 2024. About 12 ESRS's are expected to be approved. There will be a gradual trickling down to smaller firms, either directly through their reporting requirements, or indi- rectly by getting requests from their larger supply chain partners. What it means for the local economy is that many firms will gradually need to start ingraining sustainability reporting into their processes – from strategy to gov- ernance, to IT architecture. Initially, many will see it as a cost – the more forward-looking leaders will realise this is required to maintain competitiveness, and eventually can be a source of competitive advantage. 7. Getting closer to price parity for electric vehicles Attard: We've seen an increased take-up of hybrid and fully electric ve- hicles here in Malta, mainly driven by the generous government grants, but also as people realise there are advan- tages to be gained in having a cleaner and smoother mobility tool. However, there is still a feeling that these large grants are possibly helping higher in- come households, while one of the key principles the EU harps about is a just transition – one hopes that 2023 should see us make a step closer to price parity (ICEA vehicles vs EVs). 8. US property market Flores: Economic forecasts are based on historical data projected to the fu- ture, and I hasten to add that some out- liers, even by US economists, are not being captured in such forecasts such as the property market's reaction to the persistent increase in interest rates. If the USA's property market is affected, it might send additional shockwaves to the financial markets in Europe, which might create a global contagion effect akin to the one of 2008. Clearly, we must avoid another economic shock, as that would be fatal for many economies around the world. 9. Gas storages Flores: Personally, I believe that if Europe does not manage to fill up gas storages in time for 2023, it would cre- ate additional instability, especially if diplomatic relations now also with Qa- tar degenerate. That instability might erode private investors' sentiment and consumer spending, which are all im- portant components of aggregate de- mand. The dip in business sentiment and consumer spending will take longer to recover due to the post-COVID eco- nomic shocks and the ensuing slow recovery of the labour market. Several workers left the retail sector, consum- er spending was eroded due to income losses emanating from the closure of the retail sector in response to the pan- demic, and the ensuing energy and food inflationary pressures further eroded the disposable income of workers. Predictions for 2023 from economists Stephanie Fabri, Clint Flores, and EY Malta managing partner Ronald Attard "If Europe does not manage to fill up gas storages in time for 2023, it would create additional instability, especially if diplomatic relations now also with Qatar degenerate. That instability might erode private investors' sentiment and consumer spending"