“Imagine the container is bringing over a cargo of pipes; there’s no other option but for the pipes to become around five times more expensive,” Mizzi warned.

He described the situation as a “comedy of errors”, which started when former US President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on China, continued when the Suez Canal was blocked for almost a week due to the grounding of a container ship, and was accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Rather than going to parties or theatres or football games, everyone stayed home and purchased iPads and electric bikes instead,” he said. “This led to ports being clogged, which is still happening… as of last August, around 500 ships were still stuck at ports, not to mention China’s ports being stuck due to quarantine and illnesses.”

This price surge is one factor which has led to the inflation of certain goods, a problem which is becoming a major political issue with the general election around the corner. 

The PN recently proposed a €40 million rescue fund for importers and exporters, arguing that the European Commission could agree to this due to Malta’s double insularity problems.

Energy and Enterprise Minister Miriam Dalli has played down this proposal, arguing that problems within the logistics industry cannot be solved just by pumping public funds into the industry.

PL candidate Malcolm Paul Agius Galea has also urged the government to clamp down on price gouging practices in the market, warning that some businesses are taking advantage of inflation to raise their prices unfairly.