Macau’s gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 11.5 percent in the second quarter on the back of robust gambling activity in the former Portuguese enclave.
Data released by Macau Statistics and Census showed that Macau’s GDP during April to June 2017 period was MOP95.06 billion (US$11.78 billion), the fourth consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth. The data, which was released last week, was also higher compared to the previous quarter.
Macau attributed the GDP expansion to the increases in exports of services and private consumption. Exports of services grew by 18.8 percent year-on-year, thanks to gaming services and tourism.
Both sectors grew by 19 percent and 22.1 percent, respectively, according to the statistics bureau.
Macau casinos have now grown their gaming revenue for 12 consecutive months, as VIP gamblers continue to migrate back to their traditional home.
Early this month, Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) announced that July’s gaming revenue hit MOP 23 billion ($2.86 billion), a 29 percent gain over the same month last year. It was also nearly 15% higher than June’s result and the biggest year-on-year monthly gain since February 2014.
Meanwhile, private consumption and imports of goods also rose by 3.4 percent and 2.4 percent in the second quarter of 2017, pushing the domestic demand higher. The growth of domestic demand, however, was muted by a decrease in the government’s final consumption expenditure.
The data stated that both government final consumption expenditure and investment decreased by 2.4 percent. Meanwhile, the implicit deflator of GDP, which measures the overall changes in prices, went up by 2.2 percent year-on-year.
For the first half of 2017, Macau’s economy jumped by 10.9 percent in real terms.
“In terms of the major expenditure components of GDP, private consumption expenditure, government final consumption expenditure and investment rose by 2.5%, 0.9% and 1.8% respectively year-on-year; exports and imports of goods increased by 5.5% and 3.8% respectively; meanwhile, exports and imports of services went up by 16.0% and 13.8% respectively, with exports of gaming services and other tourism services rising by 15.0% and 21.5% respectively,” the statistics bureau said.
