Macau posts 2.8% GDP growth in first half

The local economy is showing steady signs of recovery in 2025, with the latest figures from the Macau Economic Association (MEA) revealing a real GDP growth of approximately 2.8% for the first half of the year, recovering close to 89.4% of the 2019 benchmark.

Gross gaming revenue (GGR), a critical barometer for the economy, has shown consistent improvement. Daily averages rose to MOP684 million in May and further increased to MOP702 million in June, both surpassing analyst forecasts.

This upward trend has outpaced market expectations, the MEA added, fueled largely by a strong schedule of concerts and entertainment events, alongside a gradual resurgence in gaming revenues across the city’s concessionaires, according to the association.

Visitor numbers also demonstrated resilience, with the number of visitors reaching 109,000 in May. Meanwhile, hotel occupancy rates climbed to 87.8%, marking a 4.5% increase from the previous year.

However, despite ample liquidity reflected in a record-breaking MOP815.7 billion money supply (M2), this financial abundance has not translated evenly throughout the economy, the MEA highlighted.

Looking ahead to the second half of the year, and with the continued support of the central government, MEA expects Macau’s economic stability to continue.

The association also pointed out that market consensus forecasts a 90% chance the U.S. Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady in July 2025, with a medium- to long-term trend toward lower U.S. dollar interest rates.

MEA forecasts that the economic prosperity index will stabilize at approximately 5.8 to 5.9 in the third quarter of this year.

Additionally, GDP for the second quarter is forecasted to reach between MOP 105 billion and MOP 110 billion, representing a robust real growth rate of around 7%.