When all the numbers have been crunched, Macao’s GDP may have grown by 130 percent in the third quarter of this year compared to the previous quarter. That’s according to a forecast published by the Macau Economic Association (MEA) yesterday.
The increase marks a 90 percent spike compared to the figures from the corresponding quarter of last year and represents a recovery of approximately 75 percent of the level in 2019 – the last year before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
The association said that although Macao’s economy is swiftly rebounding, there are still uncertainties with regard to the external economic environment as well as internal imbalances. For instance, tourism-related enterprises are benefitting from an influx of customers, but smaller local businesses are struggling, the MEA said.
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The GDP comes in the wake of a report by Fitch Ratings that suggested Macao’s economy could rebound by as much as 65 percent in 2023, up from the original forecast of 46 percent made at the end of 2022.
Fitch said the revision was made in light of the SAR’s better-than-expected gaming and tourism sector recoveries. It said that gaming revenue in 2024 could hit 80 percent of its 2019 level, with GDP hitting 2019 levels by the end of 2025.
In 2022, Macao had a GDP of approximately 177.3 billion patacas, which was significantly lower compared to the pre-pandemic 2019 numbers of 434.7 billion patacas.
