Macau recorded a significant decline in per-capita visitor spending during the first half of 2025, falling 12.8 percent year-on-year to MOP1,970 ($246), despite a modest increase in total non-gaming expenditure and rising visitor arrivals.
According to the data from Statistics and Census Service (DSEC), total non-gaming spending by visitors edged up marginally by 0.2 percent to MOP37.86 billion ($4.73 billion) in the first half of the year, according to official statistics. The increase in total spending, combined with the drop in per-capita expenditure, reflects the territory’s success in attracting more visitors who are spending less individually.
Visitor arrivals surged 14.9 percent year-on-year to 19,218,540 in the first six months of 2025, though their average length of stay decreased by 0.1 day to 1.1 days. The second quarter showed even stronger growth, with visitor arrivals totalling 9,355,875, up 19.3 percent year-on-year.
Mainland Chinese visitors continued to dominate non-gaming spending, accounting for nearly 82 percent of the total with expenditure reaching MOP31.01 billion ($3.88 billion), representing a 2.1 percent increase. Among Chinese provinces, visitors from Zhejiang recorded the largest surge in spending, jumping 48.7 percent to MOP2.39 billion ($299 million). Conversely, visitors from Shanghai significantly reduced their spending by 25.7 percent to MOP2.09 billion ($261 million).
Shopping leads spending decline
Shopping expenditure experienced the steepest decline among spending categories, dropping 19.1 percent to MOP861 million ($108 million). Accommodation spending also fell 13.8 percent to MOP479 million ($60 million), while food and beverage expenditure showed resilience with only a 2.7 percent decline. The “others” category bucked the trend, increasing 15.9 percent, though specific details were not provided.
Hong Kong visitors also showed a declining trend, with non-gaming spending dropping 12.5 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2025.
International visitors showed mixed patterns, with Japanese tourists increasing their non-gaming spending by 12.6 percent to MOP135 million ($17 million) in the first half. South Korean visitors spent 2.9 percent less.
The tourism sector’s accommodation infrastructure remained robust, with 147 hotel establishments providing 45,093 available guest rooms. The average occupancy rate climbed 5.1 percentage points year-on-year to 89.1 percent, though the total number of guests decreased by 1.0 percent to 7,202,457.
