Macao’s retail sales in the first quarter rose by 68 per cent to MOP 18.7 billion year-on-year, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) has announced.
The sales of communication equipment (up 182 per cent), leather goods (up 150 per cent), and watches and jewellery (up 123 per cent) recorded notable year-on-year increases, however supermarket sales dropped by nearly 18 per cent.
Quarter-on-quarter, retail sales rose by only 3.1 per cent in the first three months of this year, The Macau Post Daily reported.
According to the DSEC, 45.7 per cent of the city’s retailers expect “sluggish business” in the current quarter, while 36.7 percent expect a “stable performance” and 17.6 percent have a “favourable outlook”.
Macao recorded its first Covid-19 case on 22 January last year, and the ensuing slowdown had a drastic effect on the rest of the year’s trade.
