Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total merchandise export for March 2017 amounted to MOP1.07 billion, up by 4.8% year-on-year; value of re-exports (MOP912 million) increased by 5.2%, with that of Wine (MOP51 million) surging by 341.4%; meanwhile, value of domestic exports (MOP155 million) grew by 2.6%, with that of Glass & glassware (MOP16 million) rising by 27.0%. Total merchandise import grew by 19.0% year-on-year to MOP6.41 billion, of which imports of Watches and Gold jewellery expanded by 64.8% and 47.1% respectively. Merchandise trade deficit amounted to MOP5.35 billion.
From January to March 2017, total value of merchandise export increased by 8.8% year-on-year to MOP2.94 billion, of which value of domestic exports(MOP446 million) and re-exports (MOP2.50 billion) rose by 15.4% and 7.7% respectively. Total value of merchandise import grew by 6.5% to MOP18.00 billion. Merchandise trade deficit widened to MOP15.06 billion for the first quarter of 2017.
Analysed by destination, merchandise export to Mainland China increased by 0.4% year-on-year to MOP408 million in the first quarter of 2017, of which exports to the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP381 million) fell by 2.8%, but exports to Shanghai (MOP15 million) grew by 42.5%. On the other hand, exports to Hong Kong (MOP1.94 billion), the EU (MOP51 million) and the USA (MOP43 million) rose by 15.3%, 23.3% and 42.2% respectively. Moreover, exports to the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP0.2 million) grew by 25.6% year-on-year. Exports of Non-textiles increased by 10.5% year-on-year to MOP2.75 billion, of which value of Diamond & diamond jewellery (MOP313 million) expanded by 30.2%, but that of Machines, apparatus & parts (MOP119 million) dropped by 53.3%. Exports of Textiles & garments totalled MOP191 million, down by 11.4%.
By place of origin, merchandise import from Mainland China (MOP5.94 billion) decreased by 4.8% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2017, whereas imports from the EU (MOP4.71 billion) increased by 15.2%. Meanwhile, imports from the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP154 million) rose by 5.0%. Analysed by place of consignment, merchandise import from Mainland China declined by 0.6% to MOP2.56 billion, of which imports from the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP2.40 billion) fell by 0.7%. Imports of Consumer goods grew by 13.0% to MOP12.02 billion, with imports of Gold jewellery (MOP1.64 billion) and Watches (MOP1.30 billion) rising by 25.9% and 43.5% respectively. However, value of imports of Fuels & lubricants (MOP1.27 billion), Mobile phones(MOP1.25 billion) and Construction materials (MOP458 million) dropped by 5.2%, 4.3% and 7.2% respectively.
External merchandise trade totalled MOP20.94 billion in the first quarter of 2017, up by 6.8% compared with MOP19.60 billion a year earlier.