The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Lei Wai Nong, said he expects the local economy in 2021 will hold a steady course, with good momentum for growth.

The Government would closely monitor the latest developments around the world, while advancing local effort for attracting a greater number of visitors to Macao, Mr Lei told reporters on Thursday (7 January).

The Secretary additionally said the Government’s forecast for 2021 gaming revenues remained unchanged, at around 130 billion patacas.

Since the resumption on 23 September across the mainland, of the facilitated individual travel scheme to Macao, the city had seen an increase in the number of inbound travellers. Since 6 September, Macao had introduced a promotional campaign offering 105,000 hotel room nights, in order to attract more visitors and boost the local economy. The campaign was well received by mainland visitors, Mr Lei said.

The Government would step up effort to extend tourists’ length of stay in Macao, at a time when the growth in the overall number of visitors had not been as significant as might have been expected. Mr Lei pointed out that it was crucial for Macao to maintain the high quality of its services for tourists, and for them to feel at home, in order to encourage them to make repeat visits.

The Secretary gave several statistics relating to performance of the economy. The number of shops closed in 2020 recorded a 30-percent decrease compared to shop closures in 2019. There were 11,000 newly established shops in 2020, similar to the number in 2019. The latest unemployment rate among Macao ID holders was 4.0 percent, slightly improved from the previously-recorded 4.1 percent. The aggregate number of job-seeker registrations filed with the authorities was circa 6,200. Approximately 330 applications for unemployment subsidy had been received recently, compared to more than 780 in April.

The Government would continue to pay close attention to any changes in the labour market, while stepping up effort to match job seekers with potential employers, and offering a greater amount of professional training, Mr Lei added.

When asked by reporters, the Secretary said that Deputy Director of the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, Mr Leong Man Ion, had applied for non-paid leave for personal reasons. Mr Lei said he respected the decision and appreciated Mr Leong’s professional contribution to the Bureau.