Macau’s imports in the first five months of the year, accounting for 89.9 percent of its total external merchandise trade, fell by 5.5 percent year-on-year to 50.69 billion patacas (US$6.27 billion), the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) announced this week.
Total exports, comprising domestic and re-exports, rose by 2.3 percent to 5.67 billion patacas, with re-exports accounting for 90.0 percent of total exports.
Macau recorded a trade balance deficit of 45.0 billion patacas between January and May.
Food and beverages continued to be Macau’s number-one import segment, rising by 7.5 percent to 9.399 billion patacas. Imports of mobile phones fell by 22.8 percent to 1.1 billion patacas, while construction material imports dropped by 39.2 percent to 573.2 million patacas in the first five months of the year. Other major import items included garments and footwear, gold jewellery, beauty, cosmetic and skincare products, handbags, fuels and lubricants, and watches.
Merchandise imports mainly originated from the Chinese mainland (29.4 percent), France (15.1 percent), and Italy (10.6 percent).
Macau is a separate Chinese customs territory. The Chinese special administrative region (SAR) is a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the World Customs Organisation (WCO), under the official designation of “Macao, China.”
Macau has one of the world’s highest per capita GDPs. In 2024, according to DSEC figures, Macau's per capita GDP stood at 587,922 patacas (US$72,767, at the current exchange rate). The local pataca currency is indirectly linked to the greenback through its Hong Kong dollar peg.
The Macau SAR’s financial reserves amounted to 632.5 billion patacas (US$78.2 billion) at the end of April, according to the latest available official figures. The Macau SAR has no public debt.
