Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/747633
45 Events maltatoday, SUNDAY, 6 NOVEMBER 2016 PKF: Trusted research you can count on Tourism in Malta After getting a series of excel- lent results, this sector has be- come a critical component of the Maltese economy. However, it is necessary to take a more in- depth look at the phenomenon, considering the framework in which it takes place: primarily, we analyse the economic fabric, then we will investigate the dy- namics of international demand in the tourism industry. In the second part, after a his- torical introduction we will see the combined effect that growth in arrivals will have on domestic inf lation and employment. In the third part, we give a wider look to the general mac- roeconomic framework, evalu- ating the state of economic environment, which interacts with the tourist industry and of which it is part of. The most important aspects in these ob- servations are the balance of the external accounts, in which tourism plays a central role, and public finance; equally neces- sary to consider the exposure of the private sector. In the fourth part, we evalu- ate what are the risk factors of the economy and international finance, not only European, which are likely to inf luence ei- ther positively or negatively the tourism sector, and where the main threats lie. Another set of risks is made up of environmen- tal issues. In the last part, we will ana- lyse the effect of reforms, some already in place such as the bed tax, the rise in alternative ac- commodation and the impact that they will have in the short and medium term. Finally, in or- der to propose solutions to the problems brought to light dur- ing the study, we will assume which of these reforms could be effective in achieving a stable path for a long-term growth. Oil & Gas, Maritime Industry This study focuses on the current and future state of the maritime industry with particu- lar reference to the nascent oil and gas industry. It attempts to project revenue streams aris- ing from related activities such as registration, certification of rigs, repairs of rigs and de- commissioning of rigs, supply of personnel and associated mate- rials for oil and gas exploration activities in neighbouring coun- tries. The volume of business anticipated from bunkering of LNG vessels and the business model for a future LNG refuel- ling depot and storage facili- ties in Delimara. Other topics include the potential of setting up a dispute resolution and arbi- tration centre in Malta to adju- dicate international oil and gas related cases. Women in the workplace PKF Malta's initiative to con- duct a study on female partici- pation in the workforce started in July 2015, inspired by recent findings of the National Statis- tics Office which show that in Malta the highest female activ- ity rate was recorded in 2015, at 53.8%. This rate has increased substantially over the years, but it is still not close to the overall EU average of 66.8%. Paradoxi- cally the majority of university graduates are female. The main aim of PKF's study was to evalu- ate the different perceptions of Maltese women on female em- ployment. For the purpose of this research, three groups of fe- males were particularly studied. These groups consist of female business owners, mothers in employment, and idle/inactive mothers. Several females who form part of these groups were assessed through different sur- veys that converge to a common denominator. PKF met with several local entities that are engaged to im- prove the rate of female par- ticipation in the labour force through several schemes. These entities include the Employment & Training Corporation (ETC), GRTU, Malta Chamber of Com- merce, Malta Confederation of Women's Organisations (MC- WO), NCPE and last but not least the Minister for Education and Employment, Hon. Evar- ist Bartolo. These entities have shared their views and feedback on the subject and have also of- fered their support in the study. A revamp during September and October 2016 covered the following areas: • A complete updating of all data presented in Ap- pendix A, this essentially brought all data in the regression analysis up to speed from 2014 to 2015; • Inclusion of a new chap- ter (5) 'A Comparison between Male & Female Labour Conditions Test- ed ', demonstrating a com- parative of male versus female earnings. Data for the 2016 updates was mainly sourced using data from Eurostat and NSO where appli- cable. Gentrification This is an ambitious exercise which tries to quantify the supply and demand for luxury quality apartments, deluxe hotel and of- fice accommodation in Paceville and the Sliema/St Julians area. It is partly based on a study of the Property Price Index (PPI) to- gether with comparative studies of similar trends in popular re- sorts such as London, Paris, Mo- naco, Majorca and Cyprus. Use is made where applicable of the Mott MacDonald report on the Paceville high rise luxury build- ings project which is currently up for public consultation. Demand analysis is tested on a span of years to assess the probabilities of attracting HNWI from differ- ent sources apart from applicants to the IIP scheme. Education A detailed study has been re- cently concluded to check the incidence of students in an edu- cational institution undergoing vocational and other training and quantify the level of mis- matches (if any) in a number of students after having concluded their studies in their choice of re- spective job opportunities. All studies are available upon written request made to Dr Mari- lyn Mifsud - Business Associate at mmifsud@pkfmalta.com Kia Motors among Interbrand's 100 Best Global Brands THE global value of the Kia Mo- tors brand has grown by 12% over the last year, according to Interbrand 's exclusive list of the 100 'Best Global Brands'. The Korean manufacturer's es- timated brand value grew from US$5.7 billion in 2015 to US$6.3 billion in 2016. This represents a seven-fold (603%) increase since 2006, the year in which the brand declared design-driv- en management as a key strate- gy behind the company's future growth. Interbrand 's 17th annual Best Global Brands report identifies the 100 most valuable global brands, analysing the many ways in which the strength of a brand benefits organisations – from delivering on customer expectations to driving greater economic value. "Despite economic uncertain- ty and stagnation in the auto- motive market across a number of regions, this welcome rise in Kia's brand value is a clear re- f lection of extensive company- wide efforts to ensure consist- ent and continuous growth in our brand power. This result provides us with further moti- vation to continue our mission to become the most desirable automotive brand in the eyes of consumers," said Charles Suh, Senior Vice President of the Corporate Marketing Division, Kia Motors. This significant – and sus- tained – growth is a result of company-wide efforts to strengthen the brand and cul- tivate a more emotional attach- ment to Kia and its products among consumers. Since 2012, Kia's global brand campaign, A Different Beat, has enabled the company to emphasise the vi- brant, reliable and distinctive nature of its cars. Perhaps the most important achievement over the last 12 months has been Kia's first- place ranking in the USA's J.D. Power 2016 Initial Quality Study. Ranked ahead of all other manufacturers, this marks the first time in 27 years that such a brand has taken the top spot in the automotive industry's benchmark evaluation of new vehicle quality. Kia's rise to the top of this year's ranking was driven by class-leading perfor- mances from the Sportage com- pact crossover and Soul urban crossover. To accompany the ongoing growth in the company's prod- uct line-up, and increased capa- bilities of each vehicle, official partnerships with the world 's most high-profile sporting events have provided additional momentum to the growth of the Kia brand. Sponsorship ar- rangements with FIFA, UEFA, NBA, LPGA and the Australian Open tennis championship have provided the company with a wealth of opportunities to en- gage with the company's young- at-heart target customers across the globe. Motors Inc. Ltd is the official Kia dealer in Malta. To view or test-drive any Kia model, visit the Kia Showroom in Mdina Road, Qormi, visit the website kia.com.mt, Facebook page Kia Malta, send an email to kia- sales@motorsinc.com.mt or call 22692120 or 22692123. Free bus service for President's Solidarity Fun Run participants DURING the 8th edition of 'The President's Solidarity Fun Run 2016' in aid of the Malta Com- munity Chest Fund today, Malta Public Transport will offer a free public transport service to all participants wearing the event's official wrist band. The event shall commence at 10.00 am with four departure points being Rabat, Paola, Santa Venera and the University of Malta. All routes meet at Portes des Bombes, where all those attending will proceed to St. George's Square for the big fi- nale. To ease travel for all those taking part, the bus service shall be free of charge between 07:00 and 14:00. "We are glad that we'll be in- volved in this year's fun run as we believe that such events bring our community together with the aim of helping those in need," declared Daniel Grech the Commercial Director of Malta Public Transport. "We invite all participants to make their way home by bus after the event. All they have to do is show the driver the official wrist band to travel for free." During the time of the fun run, the Valletta Bus Terminus shall be closed until all the par- ticipants enter Valletta. Instead, the bus terminus will be shifted to St. Anne's Street. Route 122, from Valletta to Gwardamangia and Mater Dei will be suspended between 09:00 and 11:30. All diversions happening dur- ing the time of the event will be available online on the following link: publictransport.com.mt/ en/service-updates.