Macau GDP up 18% in 2021

Macau saw a rebound in gross domestic product in 2021.

Macau.- The Macau Statistics and Census Service has reported that Macau’s GDP rose by 18 per cent year-on-year in 2021. For full-year 2020, the economy had shrunk by 56.3 per cent in real terms.

Exports of services rose by 62.1 per cent year-on-year. Exports of gaming services grew by 45 per cent, while tourism services were up 127.2 per cent year-on-year. Macau has recently reported full-year gross gambling revenue of MOP86.86bn (US$10.82bn), up 43.7 per cent when compared to the previous year.

Authorities stated: “Domestic demand rose by 3.0 per cent year-on-year. Local economic activities of Macau residents have recovered, with private consumption expenditure expanding by 7.0 per cent year-on-year.”

However, Macau’s economy contracted 4.4 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2021. Exports of gaming services fell by 14.4 per cent and exports of other tourism services rose by 8.9 per cent.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that Macau’s gross domestic product (GDP) is unlikely to exceed pre-pandemic levels until 2025. It expects GDP to grow by 15 per cent this year as tourism recovers and domestic demand improves. 

It expects growth to accelerate in 2023 before gradually reducing to long-term potential of around 3.5 per cent annual growth. This depends on a safe reopening to tourists, with Covid-19 vaccination key to that goal.