Macao\'s economy expands by 24% in Q2

Spurred by favorable performance of the gaming sector, Macao\'s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2011 grew 24 percent year-on-year, according to the figures released on Tuesday by Macao\'s Statistics and Census Service (DSEC). Analyzed by major components, exports of gaming services and investment soared by 39 percent and 23.1 percent respectively in the period when total visitor spending, excluding gaming expenses, increased by 5.9 percent, the figures indicated. Meanwhile, protracted decline in merchandise exports continued to register a decrease of 8.2 percent in the second quarter of 2011, while merchandise imports increased by 26.4 percent, the DSEC said. Due to the continuous rise in total employment and income, together with low unemployment rate in the second quarter, private consumption expenditure increased by 11.3 percent, of which final consumption expenditure in the domestic market rose by 7.6 percent, while final consumption expenditure abroad surged by 21.3 percent. The figures also indicated that private investment during the same period grew by 24.4 percent year-on-year, while government investment increased by 7.3 percent.