According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, the total number of personal credit cards issued by banks in Macao continued to rise in the third quarter of 2018. Both the credit card turnover and total repayments witnessed double-digit growth from a year ago.
Cards issued
On the back of the increasing dual-currency and triple-currency cards, the total number of personal credit cards issued by banks in Macao stood at 1,282,732 at end-September 2018, equivalent to an increase of 3.2% over a quarter earlier or 10.3% over a year earlier. The numbers of pataca (MOP) cards, Hong Kong dollar (HKD) cards and renminbi (RMB) cards grew year-on-year by 9.7% (to 903,711), 6.4% (to 93,294) and 13.7% (to 285,727) respectively.
Credit limit granted and delinquency
At end-September 2018, credit card credit limit granted by banks in Macao reached MOP32.5 billion, up 7.6% from end-June 2018 or 17.0% from end-September 2017. Credit card receivables amounted to MOP2.5 billion, of which the rollover amount totalled MOP794.5 million, representing 31.6% of credit card receivables. The delinquency ratio, i.e. the ratio of delinquent amount overdue for more than three months to credit card receivables, remained unchanged at 1.49% when compared with the previous reporting period.
Turnover and repayment
For the third quarter of 2018, the credit card turnover totalled MOP5.6 billion, equivalent to a rise of 2.5% quarter-to-quarter or 13.7% year-on-year. The cash advance turnover was MOP227.5 million, occupying 4.1% of total credit card turnover. Credit card repayments, in which payments for interest and fees are included, rose 4.8% from the previous quarter or 10.8% from the same period last year to MOP5.7 billion.