Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that there were 16,563 wholesale & retail establishments, market stalls and fixed street stalls operating in 2021, an increase of 568 year-on-year; however, total number of persons engaged decreased by 2,957 to 69,437. As the coronavirus pandemic situation was relatively stable compared to 2020, receipts of Wholesale & Retail Trade rose by 34.7% year-on-year to MOP114.19 billion, returning to over 80% of the receipts in 2019. Expenditure stood at MOP104.84 billion, up by 29.7% year-on-year. Gross Surplus surged by 243.7% year-on-year to MOP10.79 billion. Gross Value Added that measures the sectoral contribution to the economy totalled MOP21.41 billion, an uplift of 58.1%. Gross Fixed Capital Formation expanded by 31.7% year-on-year to MOP973 million.
Wholesale establishments totalled 6,331, an increase of 48 year-on-year; yet, number of persons engaged decreased by 1,406 to 21,255. Receipts of Wholesale Trade went up by 11.9% year-on-year to MOP34.76 billion, with receipts from Wholesale of Consumer Goods such as electrical appliances, medicines and hygiene products (MOP9.25 billion), Wholesale of Machinery, Equipment & Supplies (MOP5.16 billion) and Wholesale of Food, Beverages & Tobacco (MOP11.34 billion) rising by 11.5%, 8.4% and 7.2% respectively. Expenditure of Wholesale Trade climbed by 10.1% year-on-year to MOP32.21 billion, of which Operating Expenses and Purchase of Goods & Commission increased by 13.4% and 12.2% respectively, while Compensation of Employees decreased by 8.1%. Gross Surplus amounted to MOP2.69 billion, an upsurge of 60.1% year-on-year. Gross Value Added rose by 15.2% year-on-year to MOP5.67 billion, whereas Gross Fixed Capital Formation declined by 55.6% to about MOP96 million.
Retail establishments totalled 7,771, up by 526 year-on-year; most of them were engaged in retail sale of food and beverages. Number of persons engaged in Retail Trade dropped by 1,285 to 41,630. Receipts hiked by 53.5% year-on-year to MOP73.59 billion; receipts from Retail Sale of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery (MOP16.17 billion) and Leather Articles (MOP13.62 billion) both recorded an upsurge of over 100%, and receipts from Retail Sale of Goods in Department Stores (MOP12.47 billion) expanded by 64.6%. Expenditure of Retail Trade went up by 45.1% year-on-year to MOP67.33 billion, with Purchase of Goods & Commission soaring by 60.1%; besides, Operating Expenses and Compensation of Employees recorded respective growth of 27.4% and 7.3%. Gross Surplus totalled MOP7.60 billion, a jump of 698.4% from MOP952 million in 2020. Gross Surplus of establishments engaged in Retail Sale of Leather Articles stood at MOP4.65 billion, a significant increment of 170.0% year-on-year. Establishments operating in Sale of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery and Adults’ Clothing posted a Gross Surplus of MOP1.95 billion and MOP416 million respectively in 2021 as against their deficits in 2020. Gross Value Added of Retail Trade ballooned by 94.8% to MOP14.65 billion. Gross Fixed Capital Formation amounted to MOP866 million, an uplift of 73.2% year-on-year.
There were 1,102 establishments operating in Sales of Motor Vehicles & Automotive Fuel, up by 37 year-on-year; number of persons engaged decreased by 184 to 4,175. Receipts of these establishments rose by 3.3% year-on-year to MOP4.63 billion. Expenditure grew by 4.8% year-on-year to MOP4.26 billion, of which Purchase of Goods & Commission and Compensation of Employees went up by 7.0% and 1.2% respectively, while Operating Expenses dropped by 3.8%. Gross Surplus went down by 1.4% year-on-year to MOP330 million, while Gross Value Added held steady at MOP890 million. Gross Fixed Capital Formation slid by 49.9% year-on-year to approximately MOP12 million.
Number of market stalls & fixed stalls on the street totalled 1,359, with 2,377 persons engaged, down by 82 year-on-year. Receipts (MOP1.20 billion), expenditure (MOP1.04 billion), Gross Surplus (MOP163 million) and Gross Value Added (MOP200 million) of these stalls showed varying degrees of decline in 2021.