Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total merchandise export for September 2016 amounted to MOP821 million, down by 3.5% year-on-year; value of re-exports (MOP589 million) dropped by 17.4%, with that of Clocks & watches falling by 35.5%; value of domestic exports (MOP232 million) soared by 68.8%. Total merchandise import decreased by 8.5% year-on-year to MOP6.32 billion, of which imports of Motor cars and Construction materials declined by 57.9% and 48.4% respectively. Merchandise trade deficit amounted to MOP5.50 billion. In the third quarter of 2016, total value of merchandise export (MOP2.63 billion) and merchandise import (MOP18.83 billion) fell by 2.8% and 10.0% respectively year-on-year, resulting in a trade deficit of MOP16.21 billion. From January to September 2016, total value of merchandise export dropped by 5.2% year-on-year to MOP7.73 billion, of which value of re-exports (MOP6.25 billion) decreased by 8.1%, but that of domestic exports (MOP1.48 billion) increased by 9.3%. Total value of merchandise import fell by 17.8% to MOP52.19 billion. Merchandise trade deficit widened to MOP44.46 billion for the first three quarters of 2016. Analysed by destination, merchandise export to Mainland China decreased by 1.3% year-on-year to MOP1.34 billion in the first three quarters of 2016, of which exports to the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP1.26 billion) fell by 3.9%, and exports to Hong Kong (MOP4.30 billion) dropped by 13.0%. Meanwhile, exports to the EU (MOP140 million) and the USA (MOP110 million) reduced by 17.7% and 26.2% respectively. Exports of Non-textiles declined by 4.6% year-on-year to MOP7.19 billion, of which value of Clocks & watches (MOP740 million) dropped by 30.1%, but that of Tobacco & wine (MOP621 million) grew by 45.8%. Exports of Textiles & garments totalled MOP545 million, down by 12.6%. By place of origin, merchandise import from Mainland China (MOP18.92 billion) and the EU (MOP12.75 billion) in the first three quarters of 2016 decreased by 19.4% and 10.8% respectively year-on-year. Analysed by place of consignment, merchandise import from Mainland China declined by 6.2% to MOP9.00 billion, of which imports from the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP8.52 billion) fell by 6.6%. Imports of Consumer goods dropped by 13.6% to MOP32.85 billion, with imports of Watches (MOP3.32 billion) and Motor cars & motorcycles (MOP911 million) decreasing by 31.9% and 55.6% respectively. Moreover, imports of Fuels & lubricants (MOP4.66 billion), Mobile phones (MOP3.06 billion) and Construction materials (MOP1.51 billion) declined by 12.7%, 44.9% and 37.3% respectively. External merchandise trade totalled MOP59.93 billion in the first three quarters of 2016, down by 16.4% compared with MOP71.67 billion a year earlier.
