Macau’s value of retail sales rose 29.4 percent quarter-to-quarter to 8.92 billion patacas in the third quarter, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) said in a statement yesterday.
In the third quarter, the sales values of Chinese food products (+142.4 percent) and watches, clocks and jewellery (+135.8 percent) recorded significant increases, the statement noted.
The third-quarter value of retail sales exceeded casinos’ gross gaming revenue (GGR), which amounted to 4.88 billion patacas in the same quarter, by 27.7 percent. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected Macau since January, the casino sector’s gross gaming revenue used to be much higher than the value of retail sales.
The value of retail sales in the first three quarters dropped by 52.2 percent year-on-year to 26.99 billion patacas.
The statement noted that after removing the effect of price changes, the retail sales volume index dropped by 51.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarters.
The sales values of watches, clocks & jewellery (-70.0 percent), adults’ clothing (-65.4 percent), and cosmetics and sanitary articles (62.0 percent) suffered substantial year-on-year declines, the statement noted.
In the first three quarters, the value of retail sales dropped by 52.2 percent year-on-year to 26.99 billion.
