Counterfeiting costs €43 million in sales annually

An estimated €43 million is lost in sales in Malta every year due to counterfeiting, according to a new EU study.
This translates into over 530 jobs directly lost in sectors ranging from cosmetics and clothing to recorded music and jewellery, while the wine and spirits sector is the biggest loser compared to the EU average.
A series of studies carried out by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), published yesterday, estimates that across the EU over €48 billion – or 7.4 per cent of all sales – is lost every year in nine sectors due to the presence of fake goods in the marketplace.
The sectors analysed were cosmetics and personal care, clothing, footwear and accessories, sports goods, toys and games, jewellery and watches, handbags, recorded music, spirits and wine, and pharmaceuticals.
Every year, an additional €35 billion is also lost due to the indirect effects of counterfeiting and piracy in these sectors, as manufacturers buy fewer goods and services from suppliers, causing knock-on effects in other areas.

The lost sales translate into close to 500,000 jobs directly lost or not created across these sectors in the EU, as legitimate manufacturers and in...