The Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) released the summary of the GDP for the second quarter of 2009. The rates of change of the text below refer to the year-on-year change in real terms, unless otherwise specified. The lacklustre economy sustained in the second quarter of 2009 as many principal economic indicators kept sliding down, namely gross gaming revenue (excluding gratuities) declined by 12.2% year-on-year in nominal terms; total visitor spending (excluding gaming expenses) went down by 20.6%; gross fixed capital formation shrank by 27.4% and merchandise exports plunged substantially by 58.3%. Integrating the respective information, with the base of comparison of the second quarter of 2008 being the highest in record, GDP for the second quarter of 2009 contracted by 13.7% in real terms, slowing further from the decline of the first quarter (revised upward from -12.9% to -11.9%), the worst decrease since the compilation of the quarterly GDP. For the first half year of 2009, the economy of Macao contracted by 12.8% in real terms. As regards major GDP components, private consumption expenditure rose by 0.7% in the second quarter, lower than the 5.8% increase in the previous quarter. Household final consumption expenditure in the domestic market decreased by 0.8%, while that abroad expanded by 5.3%, with the expenditure in Mainland China amounting to MOP 763 million. Government final consumption expenditure went up by 6.2%, lower than the 15.8% growth in the first quarter, with compensation of employees, and net purchases of goods and services rising by 3.0% and 15.8% respectively. As a gauge of investment, gross fixed capital formation shrank by 27.4%, receding slightly from the 31.2% decrease in the first quarter. Total private investment contracted by 30.6% upon suspension or slowdown of some major constructions, with construction and equipment investment shrinking by 32.7% and 23.2% respectively. Total government investment expanded by 163.5%, in which construction investment surged by 286.9%, while equipment investment went down by 3.1%. Integrating data of both sectors, overall construction investment contracted by 28.7%, moderating from the 34.2% decrease in the first quarter; meanwhile, decline of equipment investment also narrowed marginally from the 23.1% drop of the previous quarter to 22.6%. In terms of visible trade, the decline of the total value of merchandise exports exacerbated, falling further from the 49.2% decrease in the first quarter to 58.3% in nominal terms or from -49.9% to -58.3% in real terms. Analyzed by destination, merchandise exports to the United States, the European Union, Mainland China and Hong Kong decreased by 84.1%, 57.1%, 48.2% and 9.4% respectively in nominal terms. Total merchandise imports also saw notable decline, dipping from the 22.4% drop in the first quarter to 24.4% in nominal terms; however, the decline in real terms, at 22.4%, remained unchanged as that of the first quarter. As regards invisible trade (exports of services), exports of gaming services dropped by 12.7%; total visitor spending (excluding gaming expenses) went down by 20.6% upon the 13.1% fall of the number of visitor arrivals and the 5.3% decrease of their per-capita spending. Integrating the principal data on exports of services, overall exports of services decreased by 14.6%, same as that of the previous quarter; meanwhile, imports of services shrank slightly further from the 21.5% decline in the first quarter to 22.9%.
