The Macau Economic Association (MEA) expects Macau’s GDP to grow 100 percent or more in the second half of 2023, while the group estimates that Macau’s GDP will increase by 70 percent y-o-y in the first half.
According to a survey by the association, Macau’s economic climate index will remain “stable” from July to September. Despite the economic indicators performing well, the MEA notes that the current situation is “slightly weaker than expected”.
The research indicates that visitor arrivals totaled 2.21 million in May, about 3.7 times the figure for the same month of last year, but down 2.6 percent month-on-month, slightly lower than expected.
MEA also notes that strong gaming results have been driven by the return of tourists. “Average daily gross gaming revenue rebounded to MOP502 million ($62.55 million) in May and MOP507 million ($63.17 million) in June, the highest since the outbreak of COVID in February 2020, and the figures are back to 60 and 64 percent of the pre-pandemic levels in the same months of 2019, respectively.”
According to the Macao Government Tourism Office, Macau has received some 11.6 million visitors in the first half of the year, and authorities in the city expect nearly 24 million tourists by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, Macau recorded casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) of MOP80.14 billion ($9.93 billion) for the first half-year, an increase of 205 percent from a year earlier. The tally represents only 54 percent of GGR of 150 billion ($18.5 billion) in 1H19.
